Occasional Paper

Evolving India – Africa Relations: Continuity and Change

“India’s relations with African countries are time-tested and historical;nevertheless, in recent years the affiliation has been revitalised. Both continuity and change feature in India’s evolving relations with Africa. India’s engagement with Africa is not only directed towards aiding India’s energy strategy, but has broader goals. Indeed, India’s foray into Africa may
be seen as a continuation of the past trend of supporting weaker allies. The trends in trade, the diverse investment profile, as well as various initiatives to augment technical assistance, training and capacity building in Africa, suggest a strategy that has married components of the earlier idealistic policy with strands of pragmatism.”