Top > What's up around the Prime Minister > February, 2005

Prime Minister Meets with the Deputy Minister of Environment of the Republic of Kenya Friday, February 18, 2005 Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi held a meeting with Professor Wangari Maathai, the Deputy Minister of Environment of the Republic of Kenya at the Prime Minister's Official Residence. Deputy Minister Maathai received a Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 for her great achievement in spreading the "Greenbelt Movement," which aims at increasing greenery in Africa through forestation. She also attended the commemorative event marking the entry into force of the Kyoto Protocol held in Kyoto on February 16, where she contributed a message. During their meeting, Deputy Minister Maathai expressed how impressed she was with the Japanese word "mottainai," which could be literally translated as "don't waste what is valuable," to which Prime Minister Koizumi explained that "The word initially comes from the situation when Japanese people faced with food shortages in the past, children were told by their parents to eat their rice while appreciating the people who prepared it." Deputy Minister Maathai then stated that there are many "mottainai" examples in Africa, such as the disposal of plastic products that have been used only once and that she wished to spread the concept of "mottainai" to the world.