In the post-Covid period, India and African nations need to collaborate in the four focus areas of public health, digital delivery, skilling and capacity building, and green economy, Minister for External Affairs S Jaishankar has said.
“There is no doubt that in Africa, as in other parts of the world, the Covid pandemic has created a new awareness and demand on the public health side. Inequity in access to medicines and vaccines has further highlighted problems. On its part, India envisages health cooperation as reflecting our Global South solidarity,” the Minister said at the ‘CII-EXIM Bank Conclave on India and Africa Project Partnership’ on Tuesday.
India’s readiness to cooperate in the area of health is reflected in the supply of medicines and vaccines to many nations of Africa.
Highlighting that Covid-19 had led to greater digital dependence, Jaishankar said that the goal must be to use new tools and practices for better delivery on the ground. “As part of our commitment to ‘Data for Development’, we support digital platforms and e-governance efforts in a range of domains. Already, India launched the e-Vidya Bharti and e-Arogya Bharti network in 2019 on tele-education and tele-medicine. Seventeen African countries have joined the project so far,” he said.
The ability to offer education, skills and training through the digital medium vastly expands the numbers who have been covered under the ITEC [Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation] and ICCR [Indian Council for Cultural Relations] scholarships, the Minister added. These investments in human capital are a statement of India’s expectations of Africa and its belief in building a truly collaborative and mutually beneficial partnership.
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India is also ready to deploy clean energy technologies to support Africa’s energy transition, especially with African countries showing great interest in the International Solar Alliance. “Whether it is in power, water or agriculture, a closer collaboration can help build Africa greener. Indeed, the full potential of our green technologies and practices should be more aggressively exploited in the days to come,” Jaishankar said.
The Minister also expressed India’s willingness to expand cooperation in maritime safety and security, given the increase in non-traditional threats faced by many African littoral states.
India’s support for Africa in the current Covid-19 crisis is also reiterated by the country’s support for the G-20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative, which offers a temporary suspension of the official sector or government-to-government debt payments of countries requesting it.