The summit is expected to bring together African leaders, ministers, senior officials, business delegations from 55 countries, and representatives of the African Union. The previous summit was held in New Delhi in 2015. Since then, the footprint of China has grown in Africa, supply chains have become more fragile, critical minerals have become strategically valuable, and developing countries have begun to demand a stronger voice in global affairs.

The relationship between India and Africa is very old. Trade, migration, and maritime links connected India with East Africa for centuries. In the modern era, the relationship was shaped by anti-colonial struggles, the fight against apartheid, and the Non-Aligned Movement. India supported African liberation movements and consistently argued for a fairer world order.

That has earned India considerable goodwill in Africa.  

India–Africa Forum Summit

The India–Africa Forum Summit process began in 2008 in New Delhi. The second summit was held in Addis Ababa in 2011. The third summit, held again in New Delhi in 2015, was the most ambitious, with participation from all African countries.

India announced concessional credit, grants, scholarships, and development projects.  

Africa matters to India for hard economic reasons. It has one of the world’s youngest populations, a growing consumer market, vast natural resources, and large reserves of critical minerals such as cobalt, lithium, graphite, copper, and other critical minerals. These are essential for electric vehicles, batteries, and advanced manufacturing.

For India, Africa is key to reducing dependence on China-dominated supply chains.

Energy is another major factor. African countries such as Nigeria, Angola, and Mozambique are important for Indian oil and gas security. With instability in West Asia disturbing global energy markets, India is looking to diversify its sources of supply. Africa offers that option.

Trade And Investment

Trade and investment also carry huge potential. Indian companies are already active in pharmaceuticals, automobiles, agriculture, information technology, healthcare, education, infrastructure, and manufacturing. Africa’s rising middle class offers a natural market for affordable Indian products and services. The Indian advantage is not always in mega-projects. Its strength lies in practical, low-cost, and scalable solutions.

India’s development assistance to Africa is substantial. In fact, Africa is the second-largest recipient of India’s overseas development assistance. India has extended more than 190 Lines of Credit worth over US$10 billion to 41 countries in Africa, supporting projects primarily in power, water supply, agriculture, transport, rural electrification, and digital connectivity.

Around 220 projects worth US$4.5 billion have already been completed.

India has also provided about US$700 million in grant assistance to Africa since 2015. These grants and credit lines have helped build institutions, training centres, power projects, water systems, agriculture infrastructure, technology centres, and public facilities.

Less About Scale And More About Capacity-Building

This is where the Indian model is different from China. It is less about scale and more about capacity-building, training, and locally useful development.

Education and training remain one of India’s quiet strengths. At the 2015 summit, India announced 50,000 scholarships for African students and professionals. Through the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) and Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) programmes, thousands of African officials, students, defence personnel, and other professionals have received training in India. This may not look as dramatic as building a port or railway line, but it creates long-term influence. A bureaucrat, doctor, engineer, or diplomat trained in India becomes a human bridge between the two sides.

Expectations from the fourth summit will therefore be high. It appears that African countries would look for a clear roadmap on trade, infrastructure finance, digital public infrastructure (DPI), agriculture, defence cooperation, healthcare, and education. They will also expect quicker execution of earlier commitments. This is where India has to be honest with itself, as delays weaken credibility. If India wants to compete seriously in Africa, it cannot move at a bureaucratic speed.

Digital Cooperation

Digital cooperation may become one of the most important areas of cooperation. India can offer its experience in digital identity, payments, e-governance, telemedicine, and education platforms. India’s DPI model is attractive because it is affordable and scalable. For many African countries, this may be more useful than expensive imported systems that are difficult to maintain.

Healthcare and pharmaceuticals will also remain central as India is already seen as the pharmacy of the developing world. Cooperation may expand into generic medicines, vaccine production, diagnostics, hospital partnerships, and medical training. This is an area where India enjoys trust and credibility.

Politically, Africa is vital for India’s global ambitions. African countries carry significant voting strength in the UN and other multilateral bodies. India needs African support for reform of the UN Security Council. At the same time, India has supported Africa’s larger role in global governance, including the African Union’s inclusion in the G20 during the Indian presidency in 2024.

The China factor cannot be ignored. As we are all aware, China has built roads, ports, railways, and power projects across Africa. It has money, speed, and scale. India cannot match China project for project. But India can offer something different, which is trust, training, affordable technology, political respect, and less-intrusive partnerships.

This is where Japan becomes important. India and Japan have looked at working together in Africa as a quiet counterweight to China. The idea behind the Asia-Africa Growth Corridor was to offer quality infrastructure, sustainable financing, digital connectivity and maritime cooperation. It has not moved as fast as expected, but the logic remains strong. Japan brings capital, technology and infrastructure expertise. India brings goodwill, manpower, low-cost solutions and comfort to African countries.

Japan, The Indian Ocean, And China Factor

Together, India and Japan can offer African countries an alternative to overdependence on China. This does not mean forcing Africa to choose sides. It means giving African nations more options. For India, Japan adds financial depth, and for Japan, India provides access and trust. For Africa, the partnership can mean better choices.

The Indian Ocean is another important part of this equation. China’s expanding port presence and naval reach have created concerns. Cooperation with Africa on maritime security, anti-piracy, defence training, and coastal infrastructure will therefore become increasingly important.

The fourth India–Africa Forum Summit will be judged not by the number of speeches delivered, but by the number of projects implemented.  Africa is looking for roads, jobs, skills, medicines, energy, technology, and fair partnerships. India has the right history and the right emotional connection. But if delivery remains slow, the opportunity will be wasted.

For India, Africa is not just a diplomatic partner. It is a future market, a resource partner, a political ally, and a strategic bridge to the Global South. For Africa, India offers a development model that is more relatable than Western prescriptions and less overwhelming than China’s scale-heavy approach.

The summit is expected to mark a new phase in India–Africa relations. But only if India treats Africa as a long-term strategic priority, not as an occasional diplomatic event. History gave India goodwill. The future will demand execution.

(The writer is a former Ambassador. Views expressed are personal.)