(4 Minutes Read)
India-Africa bilateral partnerships in areas like critical minerals, entertainment, and Agriculture highlighted
India’s Minister of Commerce Piyush Goyal urged the least-developed countries (LDCs) of Africa to strive for better utilization of the Duty-Free Tariff Preference (DFTP) scheme offered by India. He opined that greater participation of African LDCs in the India-Africa bilateral trade would result in more equitable trade and facilitate a wider participation of the African economies.
He also called for increasing bilateral trade to help both regions. “That necessitates doubling India-Africa bilateral trade to US$ 200 billion by 20230 through a strategy that would be win-win for both regions;” he added.
He was addressing the 19th edition of India-Africa Business Conclave, being organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in New Delhi on August 20-22, in association with the Ministry of External Affairs, and the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India,
Piyush Goyal also underscored the need for specific areas of cooperation with each African country to achieve this objective. We need to identify sectors, products, and investment strategies to achieve this target, along with highlighting success stories, which would enable us to course corrections wherever required; he added.
Referring to India’s achievements in the area of digital public infrastructure, Mr. Goyal called for employing India’s expertise and experience to augment Africa’s digital transformation with beneficial outcomes in areas like fintech, and healthcare among others. He also underscored the opportunity for deeper India-Africa bilateral partnerships in areas like critical minerals, entertainment, and added that technology-led cooperation in agriculture will also strengthen the food security of both regions. Highlighting the significance of the MSME sector for both India and Africa,Goyal underlined the need for deeper collaborations in this sector, and also alluded to the scope of Indian companies seeding startup ecosystems in different African countries.
Rui Miguens de Oliveira, Minister of Industry & Commerce, Republic of Angola invited Indian companies to explore investment opportunities in Angola in agriculture and agro-processing, manufacturing, financial services, healthcare etc.
Serge Gnaniodem Poda, Minister of Industrial Development, Commerce, Handicrafts and Small and Medium Enterprises, People’s Republic of Burkina Faso, said the country seeks major investments from India in sectors such as agriculture, agri-business, IT & ICT services, pharmaceuticals, renewable energy and healthcare.
Guibolo Fanga Mathieu, Minister of Trade and Industry, Republic of Chad, said the country offers significant business opportunities in sectors like agriculture, animal husbandry, and crops like cotton. IT and ICT.
Sosten Gwengwe, M.P., Minister of Trade and Industry, Republic of Malawi, said that India’s participation in the country’s industrialization will help narrow down their trade deficits. He highlighted Malawi’s ATM (Agriculture, Tourism, and Mining) strategy that opens us new investment opportunities for Indian companies.
Seydou Asman, Minister of Trade & Industry, Republic of Niger highlighted the development programs that are underway in the country and urged Indian companies to step up their engagements in Niger which has abundant mineral-rich land pockets, a long coastline, efficient transport systems, and strong prospects for renewable energy development.
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Omar Said Shaaban, Minister for Trade and Industrial Development, Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar, United Republic of Tanzania said his country sees India as an all-season partner. He called upon Indian businesses to explore opportunities in agri-business, tourism, blue economy, etc., where Tanzania has a comparative advantage.
