ITEC helps build IT capacity in Africa
External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar sees future cooperation between India and Africa will be in areas such as defence and security.
These would form a key pillar of the India–Africa partnership while maritime security would be the new frontier, he told the Inaugural Session of the 15th CII–Exim Bank Digital Conclave on India–Africa Project Partnership on 22 Sept 2020.
He stressed that Africa remains at the top of India’s priorities and that the partnership with Africa would continue to be guided by Africa’s needs.
India promises to be Africa’s most steadfast partner, he assured.
Similarly, India’s ITEC programme is helping build IT capacity in Africa.
Elaborating, he referred to digitalization as being a force multiplier and pointed out that India’s e-VidyaBharati and e-AarogyaBharati projects were empowering Africans in terms of tele-education and telemedicine.
India kept its supply lines open during the peak of the COVID pandemic and ensured that critical supplies such as medicines and medical equipment reached countries in need in Africa, the Minister underlined.
Dr. Jaishankar highlighted that the Indian Government had already undertaken 194 development projects in 37 African countries and 77 more projects in 29 countries were in the pipeline. These projects were in the areas of ICT, water, agriculture, infrastructure development among others.
The Minister observed that Indian industry had also invested in a big way in Africa with investments in consumer goods, automotive and pharmaceuticals among others.
The Indian oil and gas companies had invested US$7 billion in hydrocarbon exploration in Mozambique and South Sudan.
In addition, India’s Duty-Free Tariff Preference programme had provided enormous market access to African goods in Indian markets.
India needs to increase its shareholding in the African Development Bank and get more involved in Africa’s development, added Exim Bank of India Managing Director David Rasquinha told the conclave.
He highlighted the need to augment internal financing mechanisms in Africa and suggested that Indian banks should be allowed to expand their network in Africa as well as be allowed to take stakes in African banks.
He suggested that innovative risk mitigation measures need to be augmented so as to allow greater private sector investment in the continent. #projects #infrastructure #defence #security #maritime #investment #technologies #industries /fiinews.com
