Courtesy: Flickr / Paul Kagame
China’s footprint in the African continent is growing because it is a zealous summiteer. And now, in response to ‘debt-trap’ criticism, it also appears to be stressing private sector investment in Africa over loans and credit. Are there any takeaways for India in this?
Courtesy: GovernmentZA/ Flickr
China’s judicious deployment of economic diplomacy—in sectors ranging from infrastructure and agriculture to skill development--has enabled it to develop relations with several African countries. India, Africa’s oldest partner, which is diversifying its own relationship, can replicate parts of China’s approach
Courtesy: Exim Bank of India
The India-Africa economic partnership lags some way behind the diplomatic reciprocity the two countries share. Africa has had a trade surplus with India in the past decade, but increasing two-way trade of goods and services across sectors calls for serious promotional measures and removal of non-tariff barriers. The government, Indian business and their African partners need to devise an action plan that can take trade to $100 billion and investment to $75 billion by 2022
Cyrus Rustomjee, Senior Fellow, Global Economy Program, Centre for International Governance Innovation, Canada, spoke to Gateway House on how the Blue Economy offers exciting opportunities to even the poorest developing countries to eradicate poverty
Courtesy: BBC
Germany and India have revealed a dual priority for Africa: creating opportunities for prosperity and promoting stability. For both, these are uncharted waters and represents a shift in the locus of global dynamism, away from an Anglo-Saxon world order to a more diverse yet potentially fissiparous one
Courtesy: Flickr/U.S. Army Africa
New Delhi now has the capacity to move beyond the basics of economic diplomacy by using the strengths of India's private sector in healthcare. Africa would welcome such an initiative, which will improve the health and development capabilities of African countries. This will also serve India’s geopolitical objectives and can precede a similar healthcare rollout to other regions
Courtesy: India Africa Forum Summit 2015
Prime Minister Modi’s tour of four African countries will seek to build upon recent high-level visits to the continent, providing fresh impetus for the reinforcement of India-Africa relations in matters of diplomacy, business, security, and energy while putting to rest criticism of India’s visibility deficit in Africa. However, the onus to harness this momentum now lies with other stakeholders.
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With Prime Minister Modi set to embarking on a four-nation tour in Africa, we recall the chat we had with Kapil Kapoor, Director of the African Development Bank, on the sidelines of The Gateway of India Dialogue, where he highlighted the kind of opportunities that have arisen in Africa to provide energy and food security.
Courtesy: The First Mail
India now sees Africa as a promising market for Indian goods, services, and investments. This is evident in the government’s recent concerted focus on the India-Africa relationship—high profile visits by top leaders to African countries, a recasting of India’s development diplomacy, and an attempt to match action to past promises
Courtesy: MEA / Flickr
India has hosted a plethora of India-Africa conferences, expressing commitment to deepen mutual cooperation. It is further expected that the president, vice president, and prime minister may visit Africa this year, to follow up actively. Indeed, a senior official predicts Africa will even become “the diplomatic flavour in 2016”. An analysis.
