Japan to offer environmental technology to Africa, Asia: report - Yahoo! News

Japan to offer environmental technology to Africa, Asia: report - Yahoo! News: "Japan to offer environmental technology to Africa, Asia: report" TOKYO (AFP) - Japan will provide technological support for developing countries in Africa and Asia to help them fight against climate change and infection diseases, a newspaper reported on Sunday. Japan will unveil the programme when it hosts this year's Group of Eight (G8) summit in Toyako, a lakeside resort on the northern island of Hokkaido, from July 7 to 9, the Yomiuri Shimbun said. Under the plan, Japan will help countries in Africa and Asia "cultivate environmental leaders" in charge of taking measures to protect the environment from water pollution and global warming, the mass-circulation daily said. Japan also will take the lead in a technological study with developing countries on effective measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and combat infections, Yomiuri said. In a New Year statement, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda vowed that Japan would "lead the worldwide discussions in order to hand over clean skies to our children." Apart from Japan, the G8 is made up of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Russia and the United States. The world's second biggest economy after the United States, Japan is the home of the Kyoto Protocol, the landmark 1997 treaty that mandated cuts in greenhouse gas emissions heating up the planet.