By IANS
New Delhi : India Wednesday said that it was poised for “a major leap forward” in its relations with Africa with the holding of the first India-Africa partnership summit in April to promote stronger economic ties.
“In the next five to 10 years, there will be a major leap in relations between India and Africa,” Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma said here at a session on Africa at the sixth Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, the annual conclave of overseas Indians.
Underlining special ties between India and Africa dating back to the days of the common struggle against colonialism, Sharma announced the first India-Africa partnership summit.
“Its aim is to create a structured format of engagement between India and Africa. We have set up working groups for the first India-Africa summit,” Sharma said.
The summit will be attended by heads of eight regional groupings in Africa, five founding members of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and the current and founding chair of the 53-nation African Union.
“It’s a reaffirmation of India’s commitment to ensure that this partnership grows in the future,” Sharma said.
Without naming China that holds annual summits with Africa, Sharma said the continent had become fashionable but the ties that bind it with India were deep and unique in many respects.
Sharma also lauded the contribution of the Indian diaspora in Africa and commended them for their multi-faceted contribution to their country of origin as well as their adopted homelands.
“We are appreciative of the contribution of persons of Indian origin in the liberation struggle and in the fight against apartheid as well in the economic reconstruction of African countries,” he said.
“India’s diaspora has enriched the socio-cultural milieus of the countries they live in,” Sharma said.
Conjuring an upbeat picture of India’s burgeoning economic ties with Africa, the minister called for doubling bilateral trade from $10 billion and underlined India’s contribution to Africa in the sphere of human resource development.
Mauritian Deputy Prime Minister Ramakrishna Sithanen stressed on “leveraging social and cultural links” between India and Africa for economic development.
Lauding India’s emergence as “a global player”, Sithanen sought more investment from India in Africa, especially in the infrastructure sector.
“Africa needs investment in infrastructure. The continent needs a huge inflow of funds in infrastructure and capacity building,” he said.
“The political will is there. The time is just right for the two sides to increase their economic engagement,” he said.
In a similar vein, Logie Naidoo, deputy mayor of Durban, underlined special historical and cultural ties between India and Africa.