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Nearly 81 investment projects worth 2.7 billion dollars (about 8.5 billion dinars) will be presented by the Tunisian private sector to African and Japanese investors in the eighth edition of the "Tokyo International Conference on African Development" (TICAD) to be held on August 27 and 28 in Tunis.

These projects included in a white paper by the Tunisian-Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCITJ) would generate 37,750 jobs.

The 128-page white paper will serve as a reference document for Japanese and African partners, President of the CCITJ, Hedi Ben Abbes said at a press conference Monday.

It contains project factsheets likely to attract Japanese and African investors in a bid to establish partnerships and secure potential funds, he specified.

The white paper involves projects that have been proposed by growth businesses, besides new projects and others already in place and seeking potential partners.

These projects will be implemented as part of a triangular partnership Japan-Tunisia-Other African countries in sectors with high added value, he pointed out.

The sectors are the green and blue economy (21 projects), the digital sector, artificial intelligence and space technologies (20), pharmaceutical and medical (17), industrial (12), infrastructure and logistics (9) and finance (2).

Ben Abbes reminded that the paper was initially drafted in December 2020, before a first version comprising 31 projects worth 300 million dollars was published on May 19, 2022,

The chamber first received 225 project proposals to finally retain 81 projects, 75% of them with a digital and artificial intelligence component, he noted.

During the TICAD, the Chamber will distribute 4,000 copies of the white paper, besides a soft copy which will be posted on CCITJ website.

Japanese Ambassador to Tunisia Shinsuke Shimizu recalled that Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will not attend TICAD 8 as he tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday.

Yet, he will participate in the event remotely, the ambassador added, saying the Japanese Foreign Minister will head the delegation that will be travelling to Tunisia.