India-Africa Relations

Syllabus

GS 2    >    International Relations    >    India and Global Powers

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Lauding its upward trajectory in terms of aspirations, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar emphasized that India is placing its bets on Africa's growth due to the abundant opportunities presented by its demography and resources.

ABOUT INDIA-AFRICA RELATIONS (KAMPALA PRINCIPLES)

India’s approach to a development partnership with Africa is guided by the Kampala Principles enunciated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2018:

WHY INDIA NEEDS AFRICA:

• South-South cooperation: A resurging Africa can give a strong impetus to South-South Cooperation, especially when it comes to addressing challenges in areas like clean technology, climate resilience, maritime security, connectivity, and blue economy.
• Next growth pole: By 2030, Africa will represent almost a quarter of the world’s workforce and consumers. With 54 countries, a billion people, and an abundance of resources, Africa offers a market for India.
• Resource potential: Africa, especially the western parts, is rich in resources such as uranium, diamonds, copper, phosphates, and other minerals. It offers India huge potential for collaboration in resource exploration.
• Compete with China: China focuses majorly on developing manufacturing capacities and infrastructure in Africa. But India looks to engage with Africa meaningfully, focusing on its core competencies like human resource development, skill development, ITES, education and healthcare services.
• Regional security: Cooperation with Africa is vital for India to safeguard its interest in Indian ocean region and counter threats like piracy, terrorism, drug trafficking, oil spills and China’s string of pearls strategy. Complemented by Sagar (Security and Growth for All in the Region) and Sagarmala initiatives, the Asia Africa Growth Corridor (AAGC), with Africa being an equal partner, can potentially be a game-changer in the Indian Ocean Region. 
• Food security: Africa is a food producer and can be a major source to meet India’s growing needs. Ex: In 2016 India signed agreements with Mozambique and Tanzania to incentivize local farmers to grow pulses to cover the growing Indian demand with a guaranteed minimum procurement price and quantity. 
• Reforms in governance institutions: Democratic reforms in global institutions are essential. Hence, India and Africa have voiced their support for expanding both permanent and non-permanent membership of the UN Security Council. 
• Address climate change: India and Africa are committed to sustainable development and combating climate action, which is evident in India’s SDG commitments and Africa’s Agenda 2063.
• Diaspora: Indian Diaspora in Africa constitutes 12.37 percent of the total Diaspora of India. Many of them have attained important positions. They could be crucial in strengthening India-Africa relations.

AREAS OF COOPERATION:

• Political relations: India has increased its focus on Africa in recent times by setting up more diplomatic missions and visits. For instance, in 2022, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu undertook a 5-day visit to Gabon and Senegal. In 2019, India announced 18 new Indian diplomatic missions in Africa.
• Trade relations: India-Africa trade has grown to around 66.7 billion US dollar in 2019-20. Around 8% of Indian imports are from Africa and around 9% of Africa’s imports are from India. 38 African nations have benefited from India’s Duty-Free Tariff Preference (DFTP) scheme which provides duty free access to 98.2 per cent of India’s total tariff lines.
• Investments: India's cumulative investments in Africa stand at USD 70 billion while it has extended Lines of Credit (LoCs) worth USD 12.26 billion to countries in the continent. India's investments in Africa are in sectors such as oil and gas, mining, banking, pharma, textiles, automotive and agriculture.Ex: More than 50 Indian companies are engaged in Gabon Special Economic Zone.
• Defence cooperation: Over the years, India has provided training of African military personnel at various Indian institutes such as the Indian Military Academy and the National Defence College. There has also been an increased presence of African delegations at Indian defence exhibitions such as Defence Expo and Aero India. Besides these, there are defence exercises, like the Africa-India Field Training Exercise-2019 (AFINDEX-19).
• Humanitarian aid: African countries have been significant beneficiaries of Indian Navy’s Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HA/DR) operations missions. Ex: During Cyclone Idai in 2019. Under the Vaccine Maitri initiative, India supplied 24.7 million doses of Made in India COVID-19 vaccines to 42 countries in Africa.
• Security cooperation: India has several peacekeeping operations in Africa under the aegis of UN Peacekeeping. The deployment of the all-female Police Unit of the United Nations (UN) in Liberia in February 2016 was a notable effort in this regard.
• Cyber Security and Digital Revolution: The best example of India’s digital cooperation with Africa is the Pan African e-Network (PAeN) project on tele-education and tele-medicine, launched in 2004. In September 2018, India’s Ministry of External Affairs launched a new network project – e-VidyaBharati and e-ArogyaBharati (e-VBAB), which will establish two separate web-based portals for tele-education and tele-medicine. India has also signed MoUs/joint statements with African countries like Morocco, Egypt2 and Mauritius on cyber security.
• Promoting electoral democracy: The Election Commission of India (ECI) has partnered with African countries in election management by sending observation missions and providing equipment. Ex: In 2014, Namibia became the first African country to use Electronic Voting Machines made in India.
• Cooperation over Indian ocean: Naval cooperation continues to grow strong with regular port visits, transfer of hardware and logistical support, naval intelligence, and patrolling of Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) being undertaken. The Information Fusion Center, based in Gurugram helps to track and monitor shipping traffic in the Indian Ocean, coordinate incident responses, and share submarine safety information.
• Addressing climate change: One core dimension of India and Africa’s climate change agenda is promoting green technology. Under the International Solar Alliance (ISA), India has pledged a credit line of USD 2 billion to Africa for the implementation of off-grid solar energy projects.
• Cooperation on global issues: They have moved joint proposals, such as the Agricultural Framework Proposal and Protection of Geographical Indications, at the WTO and World Intellectual Property Organisation, and have worked towards protecting the food and livelihood concerns of farmers at the Doha Development Round of WTO negotiations.

INDIA’S CHALLENGES IN AFRICA:

• Absence of a clear vision: An assessment of India’s LoCs, grants, and capacity building projects like ITEC reflects the absence of a plan for Africa. Also, there is no synchronisation between different development instruments. Hence, the overall development impact of India’s development cooperation is small and difficult to measure.
• China factor: China’s deep pockets and the larger trade engagement have seen it garner far greater influence. The soaring debt has the ability to compromise the sovereignty of African states. China has also made strategic investments to aid its string of pearls strategy in Indian ocean, like its military base at Djibouti.
• Delayed project completion: While India has engaged Africa for long, its capacity to effect changes have been limited primarily due to lack of India’s economic capacity.
• Limited access to finance: Several international banks have been forced to re-evaluate their businesses, cutting down and restructuring operations, due to concerns about risk and profitability. This has contributed to limited trade expansion with the rest of the world, including India.
• Competition from other countries: Developed countries and other emerging powers like China, Brazil and Russia have also been involved in various activities across the continent.
• Attack on African nationals in India: Instances of attack on African nationals, especially students, on the grounds of xenophobia and racism. If untreated, this could be a potential source of tension between India and Africa and damage the goodwill India currently enjoys in the continent.
• Anti India sentiments: Instances of opposition against Indian involvement were raised in some African countries. Ex: The decision to jointly develop naval facilities in Assumption Island became embroiled in Seychelles’ domestic politics.
• Political instability: The pandemic is exacerbating a decline of democracy across sub-Saharan Africa. Africa witnessed five coups in Africa since 2021: Mali, Chad, Guinea, Sudan and Burkina Faso. This, coupled with severe corruption in some African countries will be a major challenge for India in effective cooperation.

WAY FORWARD:

• Focused Africa Strategy: India should develop a detailed strategy for the next decade, identifying key areas for collaboration, such as food and health security, climate change adaptation, and gender equality.
• Continued Emphasis on Capacity Building: Recognizing Africa's large youth population, India should continue its focus on capacity building, providing skills and job opportunities.
• Harnessing Indian Soft Power: Collaborating more closely with Indian civil society organizations and NGOs to implement grassroots development projects in Africa, potentially reducing costs and increasing effectiveness.
• Development-Friendly Private Investments: Aligning India's development cooperation with commercial interests, supporting Indian companies investing in development-oriented projects like pharmaceuticals and mobile payment solutions.
• Timely Project Completion: Improving the efficiency of Line of Credit (LoC) projects and learning from other countries with better implementation records.
• Improving Experiences of Africans in India: Addressing harassment and attacks on African students promptly and educating the Indian populace about Africa to foster stronger people-to-people connections.
• Digital Infrastructure Push: Leveraging India's position as a major startup hub and its strong base of small and medium enterprises to enhance the digital infrastructure across Africa.

India and Africa have the potential for mutual benefits in areas like food security, global representation for developing nations, managing international rivalries, and upholding diplomatic connections. The long-term Gandhi-Mandela friendship symbolizes a promising future for both regions.

PRACTICE QUESTION:

Q. “If the last few decades were of Asia’s growth story, the next few are expected to be of Africa’s.” In light of this statement, examine India’s influence in Africa in recent years. (10M, 150W-UPSC 2021)