African Otaku Wants Japan to Export More Anime Goods, Says Fan Community ‘Has Grown Already’

By Takeshi Kuroiwa / Japan News Staff Writer

20:00 JST, August 22, 2025

YOKOHAMA — African fans of Japanese anime strongly urged Japanese companies to export anime-related products to the continent at an event held on Friday in Yokohama on the sidelines of the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 9).

One such fan, Shakirah Sithole from South Africa, said, “[The] anime community is not just growing, it’s grown already, and you should never ever be scared of coming into our markets and giving us what we need.”

The event, “Anime Wave Hits Africa: Unlocking Insights on Anime and Manga from Otaku in Africa,” was organized by the Japan External Trade Organization to inspire Japanese businesses to recognize the global power that Japanese pop culture possesses and new business opportunities in emerging markets.

The event was moderated by mangaka Rene Hoshino, who was born in Cameroon and moved to Japan at the age of 4. He is known for his comic “The African kid who grew up in Japan.”

Several years ago, Hoshino visited his family’s village in Cameroon. The village is small and close to the jungle, but he saw children shouting “Kamehameha,” the signature move of “Dragon Ball” protagonist Goku. He said that he was “shocked” by the global popularity of Japanese manga.

Sithole, who introduced herself as multidisciplinary artist, including makeup artist, model and content creator, said South Africa is one of the biggest anime fan hubs. She said the Comic Con Africa held twice a year attracts 70,000 people. “This is only because the venue does not allow them to exceed the capacity.”

She also said that there are people who save money all year long to spend it at Comic Con “simply because we don’t get enough merchandise here, we don’t have that access” to anime-related products such as T-shirts and cosplay items. “I just wish for more Japanese companies to come through” with the products, she said.