India may ramp up development aid for Africa

NEW DELHI: India's economic and development cooperation with Africa - including in key areas like agriculture, health, defence, technology and people-to-people connect - is set to get a major boost with govt hosting the 4th India-Africa summit later this month, after a gap of 11 years. While the summit was delayed because of the pandemic, official sources said there has been no dearth of engagements between India and Africa during the past 10 years, with around 50 high-level visits to Africa from India and almost 100 from the continent to India during this period.

According to sources, the govt is expected to announce major initiatives to ramp up development assistance for Africa at the summit, which is likely to see participation by more than 40 heads of state/ govt. The last summit saw India announcing a concessional $10 billion line of credit (LOC) for Africa, where China continues to expand its economic and strategic footprint.

PM Narenda Modi had also announced a $600 million grant assistance for Africa, under which India has already fulfilled its commitments.