India-South Africa India-South Africa 2019 | Page 19
In BRICS and IBSA
India and South Africa have generally taken
common positions at the BRICS platform.
This includes those related to regional trade,
climate change, and development cooperation,
among others. They, together with other
BRICS countries, have been instrumental in
strengthening the Southern voice.
Moreover, within the BRICS, IBSA has
been a congregation with a unique characteristic
owing to its ability to balance democracy
and development. India and South Africa
have held common positions at the IBSA
platform as they share the values of democracy
and human rights. They have also made
concerted efforts toward promoting South-
South Cooperation. The IBSA Declaration on
South-South Cooperation, Pretoria (June 2018)
stated that “IBSA recalls all eff orts over the
decades to bring about greater solidarity among
South-South countries, including the Bandung
Conference 1955, NAM 1961, UNCTAD, G-77
grouping, Buenos Aires Plan of Action 1978,
Nairobi Declaration 2009.”
As part of IBSA, the two countries
have also reasserted the centrality of the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and
to the cause of “common but diff erentiated
responsibilities” under the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change.
IBSA also holds a common commitment to
the issues pertinent to the global development
architecture including the Offi cial Development
Assistance to the countries of the global South.
In November last year, the 15th Anniversary
of the IBSA Facility for Poverty and Hunger
Alleviation (IBSA Fund) was celebrated at the
UN. The Fund has been instrumental in capacity
building and forging development partnerships
Both countries
along with
other IORA
members have
also partnered
for ensuring
maritime safety
and security.
They have been
working closely
to leverage
benefi ts from
the provisions
as envisaged
under the Jakarta
Concord and the
IORA Action Plan.
in several countries of the global South by
facilitating projects in the areas of agriculture,
employment, environment, health, and water
resource management.
In IORA
South Africa is an integral part of the
IORA. The 18th IORA Ministers meeting held
in November 2018 celebrated the 150th year
of the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi
and the 100th birth anniversary of Nelson
Mandela. The Indian Ocean is a geopolitically
vibrant region and both India and South Africa
have been working together to build a safe and
economically viable blue economy.
Moreover, both countries along with
other IORA members have also partnered for
ensuring maritime safety and security. They
have been working closely to leverage benefi ts
from the provisions as envisaged under the
Jakarta Concord and the IORA Action Plan.
The Jakarta Concord called for strengthening
maritime cooperation and developing a stable
Indian Ocean. The IORA aims to work towards
securing sea lanes of communications, disaster
relief, humanitarian assistance, people-to-
people contacts, and trade and investment by
promoting open regionalism.
Conclusion
With so many convergences at the
multilateral and regional levels, the way ahead
for India and South Africa is to leverage the
benefi ts of such cooperation for strengthening
their respective global outreach. This will help
create win-win advantages for the people of
both countries.
* The author is Associate Professor and
Chair of the International Business Area at
FORE School of Management, New Delhi.
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