Diplomatist Magazine Diplomatist March 2019 | Page 53

AFRICA DIARY
AFRICA
MATTERS AND
AFRICA IS THE
FUTURE
BY AMBASSADOR V.B. SONI*
A
frica was dubbed by the former Western colonial
powers as the dark, backward, underdeveloped
continent. Associated with dire poverty, hunger,
diseases, undernourishment, tribal conflicts and brutal
violence they condemned it as a basket case. The fact that is
often glossed over is that as colonisers they were the ones to
enslave peoples whom they brutalised and sent off millions
of their ancestors to far corners of the world, to the Americas
and elsewhere to work in hostile conditions and environment.
Their land was exploited for rich mines/minerals, natural and
energy resources from the mercantilist/imperialist age down
to the present times.
It’s only in the 1960s and 1970s when the decolonisation
process was set into motion spearheaded by countries like
India that they started gaining independence ready to start
their arduous journey for economic development and nation
building. Surprisingly the last bastion of apartheid in South
Africa fell as late as the early 1990s with the release of
Nelson Mandela.
The world scenario is changing fast. As Africans assess
and reconstruct their past, understand the present, churn
out new visions for a peaceful and prosperous continent, a
positive message has been sent out to the world that, “Africa
Matters and Africa is the Future”. Indeed, Africa is alive with
possibilities. Added to it is the new strategic signifi cance
of the continent. This has resulted in concerted eff orts by
major nations to interact with the continent as a whole. Those
holding ‘Forum Summits’ with Africa at regular intervals are
the US, China, Japan, Turkey, and India.
India’s engagement with Africa has been since millennia.
As we celebrate the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma
Gandhi we must recall his stay in South Africa in the early part
of his life and career. His identifi cation with the cause of the
locals and against apartheid regime was a good starting point
but India’s perceived ‘benign neglect’ of the region thereafter
has been rued by many African countries. The ‘Focus Africa’
initiative of the Ministry of External Aff airs of India tried to
bring our relationship back on track. Diplomatic engagements
are now being undertaken at the top level more frequently in
order to set the perception right.
The three India Africa Forum Summits (IAFS) have turned
out to be the defi ning moment to chart out a well thought out
strategy on how to steer this fast developing relationship into
something concrete and enduring one with a well-defi ned
roadmap as per the rising aspirations and expectations of the
peoples of the continent. There being no confl ict of interests,
India and much of Africa can potentially cooperate on a
number of international forums, including the United Nations,
WTO, IMF, and climate negotiations.
With India’s international profi le rising, it is looking
forward to engaging Africa more robustly. African Heads of
State / Government visit India on State visits more frequently
as do their Indian counterparts. It is, therefore, encouraging to
learn about the increasing number of State visits of President /
Vice President / PM of India to a number of African countries
during the last few years. Indian peacekeeping forces under
the UN banner are in action in various trouble spots in Africa,
including a ladies paramilitary contingent in Liberia.
With many African economies now showing healthy
economic growth rates, Indian companies are taking
initiatives to invest in infrastructure projects in Africa. Energy,
minerals/metals, agriculture, food processing, health, and
education are among other sectors where Indian companies
are now participating. Unlike China, it is the private sector
that drives Indian investments in Africa.
Choice of words in defi ning this partnership can play an
important part in building bridges of cooperation with Africa,
a region that remains deeply conscious of how the world
looks at it. Through ‘Development Partnership’ programme,
Ministry of External Affairs of India has launched an
ambitious programme for helping Africa. Indian Technical
Training Programme (ITEC) has been training thousands of
people from the continent for well over 50 years. Now after
the India-Africa Forum summits, India is setting up scores
of technical training Institutes there. As per popular demand,
the emphasis now is on skill development, capacity building
Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Diplomatist • Vol 7 • Issue 3 • March 2019, Noida • 53