Japan PM plans to visit 3 African countries next year

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is planning to visit South Africa, Mozambique and Cote d'Ivoire in mid-January next year, local media reported Tuesday. There is no definite date for the travel, which has to take the schedule of the regular Diet session to be convened in January into consideration Abe is considering taking business leaders with him to look at making inroads into rapidly growing African markets, a government source said. Abe also aims to ensure stable supplies of natural resources to Japan during his trip, such as South Africa's rare metals and Mozambique's natural gas. At the fifth Tokyo International Conference on African Development in Yokohama in June, Abe expressed his willingness to visit Africa.