India is betting on Africa’s rise and is planning to
invest 30 billion US dollars in the oil rich west African state of
Nigeria. The
rebalancing and the multi polarity of the world will not be complete
until the African continent takes its
due share of the world trade external affairs minister S
Jaishankar said
Addressing the Nigeria-India
Business Council (NIBC) here, the
minister said the rebalancing and reordering of a new global order will only
happen “when the core of it is economic … which is the rise of Africa has to be
the economic rise of Africa.”
Noting that there is about 13 to 15
billion US dollars worth of trade annually between India and Nigeria and New
Delhi has committed nearly 30 billion US dollars in investment in the country,
Jaishankar said Nigeria is India’s premier economic partner in Africa.
“India’s exports in the year that
has just been completed was 766 billion US dollars…and I’m sure, you would
surely like, (that) a larger part of that share to come to Nigeria.”
Mr, Jaishankar
co-chaired the Nigeria-India Joint Commission (NIJC) meeting, addressed two business
forum meetings, addressed a Nigerian think tank. “Noted the expansion of our
economic cooperation, especially trade and investment. Discussed new
opportunities in energy, power, renewables, transport, healthcare, fintech,
agriculture and security,” Jaishankar had said in a post on X after the Joint
Commission meeting.