India-Africa Forum summit: In largest-ever turnout, 51 African countries confirm participation

India has had a cordial relationship with African nations with most of them supporting New Delhi’s efforts to become a permanent member in an expanded UN Security Council.

India, Africa, India Africa Forum summit, India Africa relations, African countries participation, African leaders, Jacob Zuma, Robert Mugabe, Abdel Fattah al Sisi, India latest news

South African President Jacob Zuma and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

In the largest-ever turnout of African leaders in India, at least 41 leaders — including South African President Jacob Zuma, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe and Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari — have confirmed their presence in New Delhi for the India-Africa Forum summit on October 29-30, top government sources told The Indian Express.

“Of the 54 African countries, we are expecting participation from all of them which will include presence of leaders and ministers from 52 of them,” a source said. This makes it the highest attendance, surpassing China, US and Japan which have held African leaders’ summits in the past. While China ensured attendance of 48 countries (including 40 leaders) in 2006, the US hosted 50 countries (including 47 leaders) in 2014 and Japan had 49 countries (including 37 leaders) in 2013.

A formal announcement of their presence is expected to be made on Friday by India’s lead interlocutor, Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs, Navtej Sarna. The summit will witness an elevated partnership between India and the African countries and will aim to tap opportunities and expand two-way engagement in varied sectors.

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Ministerial and senior official-level meetings will be held in the run up to the summit. On October 26, India will host top officials of the African nations while on October 27, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will host her African counterparts and ministers. The summit meeting will be held on October 29 in which heads of state and government will participate. Bilateral meetings have been scheduled for October 30. This is the biggest diplomatic event to be hosted by India in the last three decades.

About 2,000 people, including 1,000 delegates are expected to descend on Delhi for the event. The influential African Union will also participate in the event. UAE and Singapore are the two countries which have been called as special invitees.

Boosting trade, enhancing security cooperation to combat threat of terrorism and exploring ways to deal with scourge of poverty, disease, illiteracy and hunger will be the major focus areas.

India has had a cordial relationship with African nations with most of them supporting New Delhi’s efforts to become a permanent member in an expanded UN Security Council.

Shubhajit Roy

Shubhajit Roy, Diplomatic Editor at The Indian Express, has been a journalist for more than 25 years now. Roy joined The Indian Express in October 2003 and has been reporting on foreign affairs for more than 17 years now. Based in Delhi, he has also led the National government and political bureau at The Indian Express in Delhi — a team of reporters who cover the national government and politics for the newspaper. He has got the Ramnath Goenka Journalism award for Excellence in Journalism ‘2016. He got this award for his coverage of the Holey Bakery attack in Dhaka and its aftermath. He also got the IIMCAA Award for the Journalist of the Year, 2022, (Jury’s special mention) for his coverage of the fall of Kabul in August 2021 — he was one of the few Indian journalists in Kabul and the only mainstream newspaper to have covered the Taliban’s capture of power in mid-August, 2021. ... Read More

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