ANKARA 

The Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) Ministerial Meeting on Saturday kicked off in Japan's capital Tokyo.

The two-day meeting is being attended by top diplomats and other senior officials from African countries.

A host of foreign ministers from African region had already arrived in Tokyo to take part in the meeting.

Speaking at the event, Yoichi Fukazawa, parliamentary vice-minister for foreign affairs, said that there are just five years left until 2030, the target date for achieving universal health coverage, a goal which Japan is committed to and led global efforts, according to a Japanese Foreign Ministry statement.

"The international community must once again remind itself of the goal of achieving UHC and take action before forgetting the lessons learned from COVID-19," said Fukazawa.

He also stressed the need to share knowledge and promote collaboration to ensure equitable access to, inter alia, health services as well as immunizations for all.

According to the ministry, the meeting will hold discussion on next year’s TICAD 9, which is set to be held next August in the coastal city of Yokohama.

*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid