Africa is a resource-rich continent with a population exceeding 1 billion people, making it an attractive market for the financial and business investments of Japanese and other multinational companies. We have established an "Africa Practice Team" in our Tokyo Office which regularly provides legal guidance to many Japanese and other multinational companies making investments in Africa, working closely with local counsel whenever local legal advice is required. Many countries in North Africa such as Egypt, Algeria and Morocco have civil law systems influenced by French law, which are familiar to Japanese companies. In addition, North Africa can be accessed relatively easily from the Middle East and Europe, which encourages investments from countries in those regions. AMT has lawyers experienced in supporting Japanese companies to invest in several countries in North Africa, and we are also able to provide a wide range of expert legal guidance on investments and/or expansion of businesses in North Africa via the Middle East and Europe.