Toyota Tsusho Corporation ("Toyota Tsusho") announced today that it and CFAO SAS, a Group company, reached agreement with the World Food Programme (WFP) on reinforcing their partnership for sustainable development and achieving food security in Africa in advance of the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development ("TICAD 9"), which is scheduled to commence in Yokohama on August 20.

Also today, a Statement of Intent was signed with WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain in attendance.

From left: Richard Bielle, President of CFAO; Cindy McCain, Executive Director of WFP;
Toshimitsu Imai, President and CEO of Toyota Tsusho.

WFP is a specialized agency of the United Nation whose purpose is to eradicate hunger and provide food assistance. As the world's largest humanitarian organization, it conducts support activities around the world.

At the time of TICAD 8 in 2022, Toyota Tsusho signed a memorandum of understanding with the WFP on improving transportation capabilities in Africa. Toyota Tsusho is working to reinforce local transportation infrastructure and maintenance structures through initiatives such as providing vehicle maintenance training to WFP and other UN agency personnel.

The agreement reached today reconfirms the existing cooperative relationship between the Toyota Tsusho Group and WFP and is intended to further accelerate these initiatives and expand support activities in Africa.

Going forward, the Toyota Tsusho Group will make use of the training centers that it operates in Kenya and other sites to reinforce human resource development programs that can contribute to enhancement of transportation capabilities including vehicle maintenance. These initiatives will lead to the development of logistics infrastructure for delivering supplies, such as food and medical supplies, quickly and reliably as part of the emergency and recovery support activities that WFP conducts in Africa and contribute to improving the resilience of African countries and strengthening food security.

At TICAD 9, which is scheduled to open in Yokohama on August 20, the Toyota Tsusho Group will contribute to promoting business initiatives that help solve Africa's social issues with "for the future children of Africa" as its key message.