Carnegie India | Rajiv Bhatia
India and Africa aim to deepen their strategic partnership, representing a third of humankind today and projected to be 40% by 2050. The India–Africa Forum Summit (IAFS) process, initiated in 2008, experienced a decade-long hiatus after 2015, with the fourth summit now planned for May 2026 in New Delhi. Key challenges include intense competition from China and other middle powers, a relative lack of Indian interest, African instability, geographic distance for West/Central Africa, and insufficient financial resource allocation, exacerbated by global polycrises like COVID-19, the Ukraine war, and the Gulf war. Recalibration requires balancing priorities across political-diplomatic, security-defense, trade, technology, economy, and people-to-people connections. Two focal areas for progress are skilling and human resource development, leveraging Africa's young population, and maritime security/blue economy cooperation, exemplified by the inaugural Africa-India Key Maritime Engagement (AIKEYME) exercise in April 2025. India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar outlined "IA Spirit" as the theme for the fourth IAFS, emphasizing innovation, resilience, and inclusive transformation.
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