Suggest measures so that India’s partnership with Africa becomes a true symbol of South South Cooperation, delivering clear-cut economic and political dividends to both sides of the equation. (2017, 20 Marks)
South–South cooperation rests on national ownership, equality, non-conditionality and mutual benefit, principles reaffirmed in the UN’s Nairobi outcome document (2009). Emma Mawdsley (2012) cautions that this “symbolic regime” of shared identity and mutual opportunity should not be taken at face value: it must be shown in results. India’s Africa partnership meets the principles in design, through demand-driven credit, condition-free training and the Kampala principles (2018), but falls short in delivery, scale and reciprocity. The measures below address that gap.
Institutional measures
- Restore the calendar. The fourth India–Africa Forum Summit was postponed for a third time on 21 May 2026; the last met in 2015. India should fix a date and add an annual India–African Union ministerial and links with the regional economic communities, so continuity no longer hangs on one event.
- Fund Africa explicitly. Africa’s share of India’s grant budget is a fraction of Bhutan’s or Nepal’s. A dedicated Africa allocation and a stronger Development Partnership Administration would match resources to rhetoric.
- Bring business in. A standing government–industry council would tie credit lines to commercial follow-through; Indian banks, thin on the ground, should open branches for trade finance.
Economic measures
- Fix the credit lines. Rani D. Mullen warned in 2018 that slow disbursement could undo India’s strategy. Publish project status, compress appraisal, relax the 75% Indian-content rule where Indian supply is absent, and co-finance with the African Development Bank and private lenders to share risk.
- Open the market wider. China has offered zero tariffs to 53 African states since 1 May 2026, while India’s duty-free scheme covers only least developed countries. India should widen it, add regional cumulation to its rules of origin, conclude the India–SACU agreement, whose talks revived in August 2026, and engage the African Continental Free Trade Area.
- Process in Africa. Pair critical-mineral access, such as the 9,000 sq km Zambia allotted for Indian copper and cobalt exploration (2025), with refining and manufacturing on African soil. That honours the Kampala pledge to “liberate” African potential, “not constrain” its future.
- Co-produce, not only export. Partner African vaccine and pharmaceutical manufacturing, scale International Solar Alliance off-grid finance, and spread digital public infrastructure that partners own, in line with the Global Development Compact (2024).
Political and people-to-people measures
- Bridge the reform gap. Reconcile the G4 plan with the Ezulwini Consensus, building on the African Union’s G20 seat that India secured in 2023.
- Institutionalise security. Keep AIKEYME biennial, expand hydrography and coastal surveillance, and sustain peacekeeping.
- Lower human barriers. Ease visas, add direct flights, protect African students from racism, and use the three-million-strong diaspora as a bridge.
- Communicate results. A coordinated public-diplomacy effort should report what India actually delivers.
Dividends for both sides
| Africa gains | India gains | |
|---|---|---|
| Economic | Jobs, local processing, affordable medicines, market access | Minerals, food and fertiliser security, export markets |
| Political | A partner without conditions; a louder global voice | Votes for reform; maritime partners in the Indian Ocean |
A recurring Indian argument wants aid tied more tightly to commercial return. The reconcilable version is to condition nothing on policy and everything on performance: milestones, co-financing and published results.
Conclusion
India’s model already carries the values of South–South cooperation; it lacks regularity, money and follow-through. Delivered on schedule, with value chains built in Africa and gains shared openly, the partnership can become a true symbol of solidarity that pays both sides.