University of Mumbai

 Morphology and Anatomy of Indo-African Relations in 21st Century: Issues and Challenges

Prof. Ajay Dubey

India and Africa have multi dimensional relationships. This engagement  is historical. Despite Africa being a continent, traditionally Indian initiatives were more or less focused  on political-diplomatic support, against racial discrimination, minor aid through its ITEC programme and as a buyer of primary products and increasing supplier of value added items. In return India was supported by African countries in its quest for Afro-Asian resurgence,  Non-alignment and for its economic initiatives under new pecking order of South-South cooperation. Globalization changed Indo- African relations substantially. Old rallying points like NAM, racial discrimination Collective Self Reliance yielded to make economic interest as prime mover, emergence of new actors in Africa like African Union and regional organizations, assertive role of African countries in multilateral institution and global governance agencies, emergence of Diaspora as a resource and opening up African primary resources like oil and markets to newly emerging economies. India responded to its emerging needs, newer opportunity and growing competitions in African continent. Its growing trade, economic investment and energy imports from Africa as wel as the new scramble by emerging powers for African resources - culminate in Indian state launching its India Africa Forum Summit in 2008 at new Delhi and organizing its second such Summit in Ethiopia in 2011. The Forum Summit was Indian state initiative to recast its Africa policy under the new settings and new the imperatives. The Forum Summits  under Banzul formula of AU, which almost all important players in Africa outright rejected, was ostensibly to protect Indian goodwill in Africa by giving collective negotiating power to Africa, and to engage new actors like AU and regional organizations.  It led to emergence of India state from aid recipient to aid giving status, (around 8 billion dollar of economic aid package for Africa at multilateral levels under two Forum Summits) and new role of Indian foreign policy bureaucracy from aid receiver to aid disburser. The Indian state initiative also enabled, facilitated and promoted India private sectors investment in Africa including in land acquisition, agricultural production and energy resources as well as in  knowledge based products like telecom and Information technology. However, there is conspicuous absence of non- government supported civil society interaction, media coverage and Indian monitoring and vigilance organizations for Africa initiative.The paper would like to examine the morphology and anatomy of new Indian engagement with Africa and asses the stated and hyped objectives of India in Africa and covert bureaucratic interest, growing challenges emerging from its own policies as well as from the emergence of new actors like AFRICOM.

 India’s New African Horizons:An American Perspective

J. Peter Pham

While the extensive network of economic, political, and military ties which the People’s Republic of China has constructed across Africa has been the subject of considerable scrutiny—and, increasingly, not a little alarm—on the part of policymakers and scholars in both the United States and Europe, the emergence of India as a major player on the continent has, until rather recently, gone largely unnoticed. That is changing, however, as Africa with its energy riches, agricultural potential, and other natural resources as well as its growing population finds itself courted by multiple suitors, both old partners and new. In this context, India’s expanding commercial and strategic engagements across Africa represent a significant move in the global geopolitical order taking shape in the twenty-first century.

This paper examines India’s rapidly expanding network of relations, analyzing the country’s burgeoning public and private investments in the region as well as its policies vis-à-vis African regional organizations and individual states, especially in the security sector. After briefly reviewing the historic role that India has played in Africa, the study looks at the principal motivations for India’s approach to Africa—including the former’s quests for the resources, business opportunities, diplomatic influence, and security—and Africans’ responses to it. In the context of the broader U.S.-India strategic partnership as well as American political and security interests in Africa—especially as outlined in the officialU.S. Strategy toward Sub-Saharan Africa, promulgated by the Obama administration in June 2012—the paper argues that India’s willingness to make significant contributions to African peacekeeping and to extend its maritime security cover to the continent’s eastern littoral ought to be welcomed, not least because of the potential positive impact on regional stability and development. Consequently, the author advances the proposition that, while not perfectly aligned, the interests of India and those of United States in Africa are generally complementary and thus there are a number of openings for greater engagement and cooperation between the two countries, a unique opportunitywhich policymakers in both should be encouraged to seize upon. 

India\\\'s Development Cooperation with Africa: Fostering Symbiotic Relations

Prof. Aparajita Biswas

India\\\'s relations with Africa date back many centuries, to the time when Indian traders began to engage with countries along the eastern coast of Africa. It continued in the 20th Century with factors such as Afro-Asian resurgence, the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and Collective Self-Reliance of South acting as key drivers of the relations. However the post globalization era witnessed bludgeoning economic relations acting as the main rallying point, resulting in the emergence of a new architecture.

India has actively pursued a capacity-building lead development agenda in Africa since the 1960\\\\\\\'s. Its assistance focuses on political, social and cultural fields, with education and human resource development being the majour thrust areas- as the aim of New Delhi has been to empower the African populace in their road to development. In this regard the most popular capacity-building initiative is the Indian Technical and Economic Co-operation (ITEC) which provides $ 1 billion worth of technical assistance and training. New institutes at the Pan-African level focusing on English language training, has also been introduced. Additionally, India is strengthening its ties with Africa through lines of credit, aid, Foreign Direct Investment (FDIs), technical assistance and contributing peacekeepers to the continent.

This article will explore India\\\\\\\'s development cooperation policy which is clearly distinct from the OECD/DAC and the Chinese approach. The impact of India\\\\\\\'s development assistance policy to African countries and the feasibility of building symbiotic relations with these nations will be analyzed threadbare.

 China-Nigeria Relations: Towards Promoting Economic Development In Nigeria

E. Olawale Ogunkola

Nigeria’s relation with China, governed by agreements, protocols and treaties spanneda spectrum of areas including political, trade, investment, aid, technical, scientific, cultural, education, health and military, has blossomed in recent years. However, the implementation of these agreements appears lopsided as China is on the fast-track while Nigeria is lagging behind.Within the China-Africa relation, Nigeria, the largest market at least in terms of population, stands to benefit in many ways from the eight measures proposed at the Beijing Summit of Forum on China-Africa Co-operation (FOCAC) which was held in 2006, the same year China published its Africa Policy (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) 2006), which re-affirmed older principles of co-operation, but added trade and investment as the basis for engagement. The focus of China in Africa is no doubt wide and diverse and encompassing as it includes political (encompassing high-level visits, exchanges between legislative bodies, political parties and local governments, and cooperation in international affairs), economic, human resource development and peace and security.The recent developments in China-Nigeria relation present Nigeria with both opportunities and challenges: Opportunities to learn from China’s growth, development and poverty-reduction strategy and maximising the spill-over from China’s growth in terms of supply of required inputs and services. This is important for Nigeria given the size of Chinese market and its growth trajectory in recent time. The relation with China also provides the country with alternative markets for sourcing inputs for the industrial sector and finished products for consumption purposes. Hence it has potential of meeting Nigeria’s quest for the much needed diversification of markets for Nigeria’s merchandise. In this vein it is important to ensure that appropriate responses to the opportunities offered by the relation are realised.The challenges posed by the relation stem from the diversity, the speed of implementation of the elements of the relations and the structure of the Nigerian economy. The relation is between a relatively advanced country with strong established institutions and a country with weak institutions. Coordinating the various elements of the relation with a view to ensuring that binding constraints to Nigeria’s development are addressed is very important.Thus, a careful cost-benefit analysis of the relation is very important as benefits and costs are likely to be scattered over different areas of interaction. This is particularly so given the special nature of China’s relation in terms of financial and technical aid.China’s approach to financing has also been identified as another unique factor in the explanation of recent developments in China-Nigeria relations. China’s official financial support to Africa generally differentiates between social services and business development projects with the former attracting grants and quasi-grants and the latter attracting trade credit and commercial loans and in most cases repayment is linked to the output of the projects (especially crude petroleum). Thus China’s official assistance is characterised  Aligning debt financing with commercial project Using aid to leverage financing from non-government sources, and  Focusing on capital expenditure and development of productive sectors.And these features help explain the changing financing unit and growing Chinese financial flows to Africa. In addition to the recent dimension, scope and nature of China-Nigeria relations, China seems to be driving the relations and hence there is the need to examine both the short and long-run implications of the recent trend with a view to ensuring maximum net positive gains for Nigeria or a win-win scenarioThis paper therefore undertakes a detailed assessment of the key features and patterns of the past, current and future evolution of the economic relations between China and Nigeria with a view to establishing an adequate understanding of the aggregate and sector-specific impact of the relationships, the associated opportunities and challenges for the development prospect of Nigeria, and putting in place an appropriate overall and sector-specific policy measures

 China’s Global zou chuqu (“go out”) in Africa

W.Lawrence S.Prabhakar

The dynamics of global engagement with Africa has witnessed a profound transformation from the centuries long colonial domination to a new trend of competitive rising powers of the globalisation era that are keen on investing and engaging with the energy and mineral store house of the world. The colonial domination and imperial control had a history of long rivalries, territorial domination of Africa and the “parceling of the continent” among the imperial colonial powers. It witnessed a complex process of political control and domination, divide and rule, cartographic and territorial demarcations complicating the complex social and ethnic patterns of Africa, exploitation of natural and mineral resources, social engineering etc. Africa’s engagement with its former colonial powers remains but at a low level of intensity of engagement owing to the acrimony that accrued over the years.In the contemporary context of globalisation and economic interdependence, the emergent economic powers known as Rising Powers that have emerged from the South are converging into Africa in what could be a new tryst in economic-commercial engagement that would funnel Africa’s colossal resources into their competitive economies accruing the immense natural, energy and mineral wealth that would fuel and sustain their rising economies and markets.Among the rising powers of China, India Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia and Turkey that have established solid engagement patterns with Africa, China has established legendary presence in Africa since the early 1970s and has consolidated its presence and partnership with 50 African states. China has emerged as an influential player in Africa. Starting from a low level, Africa’s goods exports to China increased more than 60-fold between 1998 and 2010.China’s Africa quest has been characterized by its official policy of global zou chuqu (“go out”) directive, instructing state-owned enterprises to seek long-term access to natural resources. China’s quest for Africa’s resources has been balanced with its cheque book diplomacy of aid and assistance, establishment of joint ventures in all sectors of the African economies, debt forgiveness, infrastructure and capital projects investments, Chinese worker migration and presence in the African labour market. China’s African Policy is rooted in development and “mutually beneficial cooperation”. China has always been the natural ally of the African countries based on its long-term role as champion of the developing world, China can offer debt forgiveness, bilateral trade agreements, development packages, and grant aid. China often packages its diplomatic, defense, and development aid into synchronized and synergistic offerings. Chinese investment in Africa in its various forms is often directly attributable to the natural resources China is able to procure from that continent.Accompanied by its economic and commercial engagement is China’s military presence in the continent. China’s military presence in Africa is limited but well focused. It has the potential to provide solid support to China’s Af­rican strategy, strengthening ties to the African Union while ensuring its access to strategically important minerals. China’s military involvement has three significant areas: arms sales, training and capacity building, and peacekeeping operations.The presentation endeavours to a) Analyse the China-Africa engagement in its economic-commercial reciprocal accrual of benefits; b) the geopolitics and geoeconomics of the China Africa engagement; c) China’s aid diplomacy and its impact on the African economies; d) China’s defence diplomacy in the continent.

 China’s Growing Economic Presence in Africa and Evolving Internal Conflicts

Pranav Kumar

The process of globalization and the end of the Cold War have ushered in an era wherein density of international and transnational interactions and engagements has been more condensed and crystalized than the earlier period. Even though it has been argued that owing to multiplicity of channels of communications and multitude of issues the post-Cold War international, rather transnational, relationship has become sustained and  ‘complex interdependent’, it has been well accepted that economics has been major thrust behind increased interaction among nation-states. No other country can match China as a case in this context. Trade ties, foreign investments, aids under the so called rubrics of south-south cooperation are various channels through which China’s economic presence in Africa has been phenomenal during the last two decades. China has not only become a force to reckon with in Africa for the western economic powers, it has become surpassed them and has become single most important economic power in many of African countries. The Chinese presence is more prominent in the resource rich and eastern countries.It has been highlighted by a number of studies that Africa has been marred by plethora of internal conflicts. The sub-Saharan Africa has been infamously quoted as a region that hosts various forms of internal conflicts including resource based conflicts, socio-cultural conflicts and political conflicts. Apparently, the role played by the western powers, ineralia, has been termed as a root cause of the internal conflicts. The colonial and the Cold War powers- by draining wealth, by siphoning off  resources, with the help to their exploitative  colonial policies and subsequent colonial legacies, by introducing and implementing the Washington consensus, by creating social-cultural and ideological schisms- have been held responsible for widening the differences, and  inducing and accelerating  internal conflicts in Africa.The classical realist and liberal theories, and the ‘second image’ analysis of international relations   establish a cause-effect relationship between domestic factors and nation-states’ behavior at the ‘third level’. Unlike above mentioned theoretical and analytical frameworks, wherein the domestic factors are considered as independent variables and nation-states’ behaviour at the ‘systemic level’ as dependent variable, this paper explores a cause-effect relationship other way round. By taking Chinese economic presence as an independent variable (attribute), the paper tries to explore its linkages with evolving internal conflicts in Africa. Seemingly, by de-hyphenating conditionality associated with economic aid, by involving public sectors in various economic activities, by chanting the slogans like ‘south-south cooperation, and so on, China has been projecting its economic engagement with Africa as a stark departure from the model adopted by the western countries. However, the ground realities and a longitudinal trend analysis during last two decades show that Chinese economic engagement in Africa has not been immune from internal conflicts and has not decelerated the intensity of internal conflicts rather it has triggered host of new conflicts in the region. The paper tries to understand as to how the Chinese economic engagement has been linked-negatively or positively- with evolving internal conflicts in Africa. Although the paper is diagnostic in nature but it has obvious policy ramifications for India.

 China’s Engagement with Africa: Post Cold War Period

Bijay Ketan Pratihari

The role of China in Africa has become a topic attracting a great deal of attention in the world. After remaining dormant for a long period in world economy and politics, China’s contemporary engagement in Africa reflects its emerging interest in Africa. However, the Sino-African multifaceted relationship and China’s expanded presence in Africa brings new challenges to China’s Africa policy. China’s economic engagements in the continent have come under intense scrutiny of the international community and African countries for shaking the fragile economies and undermining the process of constitutionalism and democracy in the continent. But on the other side, the African countries are yet to make use of the advantages they get from China-Africa relationship. In this perspective it is imperative to look into the current Chinese policy towards African continent. Rather a critical overview of Beijing’s engagement towards African countries in political and economic terms, and a roadmap to improve better and resilient relationship between the two.China’s overall engagements with Africa can be divided into three major phases. First Phase, starting from the founding of the People’s Republic in 1949 to 1978, the year of the beginning of China’s economic reform. During this period, China supported the African national liberation movement and Sino-African political and economic relationship developed. Second phase started from 1978 to 2000, the year of the first Sino-Africa Forum meet. During the period, South-South economic cooperation was emphasised and economic considerations pronounced under Open Door Policy of China. Four principles announced by Chinese Premier Zhao Ziyang set the policy of ‘Economic and Technological Cooperation’ during this period. Those principles were as: equality and bilateralism; effectiveness; multiple forms and common development; and focus from strategic-political engagement to an economic agenda along with a spirit of ‘developing together’. The Third phase started in 2000 and it is continuing till today. The establishment of Forum on China-Africa Co-operation (FOCAC) in 2000 was a watermark in the Sino-African relationship since it shifted focus from single aid to win-win relationship and engagement of China with the whole African continent. The FOCAC of 2000 got a major boost with the introduction of China’s Africa Policy in 2006, the first Africa-specific policy of China in its diplomatic history. The document embodied a comprehensive and long-term plan for enhanced cooperation between China and African countries. Since 1991, the emerging dragon economy has spread to all parts of Africa in pursuit of economic and political ambitions in Africa than any other country do in the continent.Now the onus is on African governments to come together and agree on their common needs and aims. They could present a united front based on joint strategic approaches to improve and benefited from the relationship with China.

 Reviewing South Africa’s Economic Role in Africa

Kyu Deug Hwang

 Following its first democratic elections in 1994, South Africa officially rejoined the international community of nations and immediately encountered expectations that it would provide leadership on the African continent. In terms of economic dimension, in particular, South Africa has asserted its presence on the continent through foreign investments and trade in Africa. In doing so, South Africa has become an important player in driving the flow of capital, goods and people on the continent. However, it is important to raise such a question that whether and how South Africa as the strongest economy in Africa has played its economic role on the continent. In this context, the paper attempts to reflect on South Africa’s economic role in Africa since the end of Apartheid era until the middle of 2000s with focusing on the challenges and opportunities that the role has created.Experiencing the transition from pariah to legitimate player, thus, the international prestige attached to South Africa’s democratic transition has conferred a new leadership role on the region’s prospects and projects. In this sense, as mentioned above, the paper argues that South African businesses have emerged as the leading investors on the continent let alone the mining and energy sectors. In addition, South African businesses have been involved in various economic sectors including retail, construction, manufacturing, transport and telecommunications.  Although South Africa has been an active foreign investor in many African countries in the post-Apartheid period, yet, the paper argues that South Africa’s active economic involvement in the continent needs to be critically reconsidered within the context of the nature, character and type of South Africa’s economic relations with the other African countries. Thus, the paper tries not only to illuminate the character of South Africa’s trade relations with the rest of Africa but also to deal with the one of South Africa’s investment in Africa. That is, the paper seeks to explore the nature and type of South Africa’s economic expansion into Africa.Moreover, the paper emphasizes that South Africa has attempted to approach utilizing a mixed method of political and economic forces in investing in the rest of Africa. Indeed, South Africa’ relations with the rest of the continent are important in addressing South Africa’s own domestic development challenges, while at the same time seeking to resolve the continent’s development challenges. Given the fact that prosperity and stability in the rest of Africa is consistent with South Africa’s own national interest, it can be argued that political and economic environment in each country on the continent is deeply interdependent and intricately interconnected.

The Diplomacy of Partition Revisited: Afro-Asian Relations and the Economic Diplomacy of Security

Makumi Mwagiru

This paper examines the emerging relations between Africa and the emerging Asian powers. The most significant event in African international relations was the Berlin Conference of 1884-5, which amongst other things partitioned Africa and imposed the Westphalian state system on Africa. This imposition is still being felt today through the military engagements in African politics, the latest being Mali. The emerging Asian powers have enjoyed a relationship with Africa based on mutual sympathies as was characterized by the Non-Aligned Movement. While these historical relations are still being used as a rationale for emerging Africa-Asia relations, lately these sympathies have been transfigured in the Asian powers searches for economic and human security survival. The paper argues that the foreign and economic policies of the emerging Asian powers in Africa in effect are turning the clock back and economically re-partitioning Africa. The paper argues that this trend of relations, while useful for Asia, is detrimental to Africa, and hence needs to be revisited. The paper concludes that at the end of the day, relations between Africa and the emerging Asian powers must be based on the need for both to maintain their identity and interests in mutually fulfilling ways. The failure to do so will lead to the emergent (economic) partition of Africa, with all its attendant consequences for its future survival.

Nuancing \\\\\\\'Asia in Africa\\\\\\\': A Critical Perspective from Zambia

Rohit Negi

Asian states and citizen have been important agents in Africa for a very long time. What is new contemporarily is the increasingly geo-economic bent of this previously largely geopolitical relationship. In this, Asian agents enter a highly competitive economic landscape, composed of Western, African, and of course, West, East, and South Asian interests. The trade-related aspects of the emerging Asia-Africa relationship are, moreover, highly uneven, with certain sectors and spaces much more important than others. A nuanced view of the more general phenomenon is therefore needed.To this end, and beyond the celebration of \\\\\\\'Asia in Africa\\\\\\\' or its critique as some kind of \\\\\\\'new colonialism\\\\\\\', this paper argues that the situation should be viewed from the worm\\\\\\\'s eye, that is, from the specific places that Asian investment touches down in Africa. What does it entail? How are differently situated Africans affected, and how do they react? And what are the implications of \\\\\\\'Asia in Africa\\\\\\\' with regards to the region\\\\\\\'s developmental prospects?The paper approaches these questions through the vantage point of the Southern African country of Zambia; specifically, its all-important copper mining sector. It places the increasing Asian presence--eg. Vedanta\\\\\\\'s ownership of the biggest mine, and Chinese state owned NFC\\\\\\\'s of the largest processing plant--within the changed forms of resource governance and the political shifts accompanying them in Zambia. The main argument is that both India and China face several challenges in African locales, including rising resentment of their presence, and in contrast to conventional views of their all-pervading nature, failure is as likely for Asian powers there as success.  

 Relationship between the Emerging Powers and African StatesTurkey as a new partner or another scrambler?

F. Gözde Çolak

Africa is a growing arena of competition among the great and rising powers in the emerging new world order. Turkey views Africa, with its geographical proximity, natural resources, and relatively not-yet-scrambled market, as an excellent opportunity to realize Turkey’s domestic, regional, and international aims, especially in the last ten years. Trade, religion, and non-governmental engagement are the main elements of Turkey’s Africa policy in this newly-adopted foreign policy making.At official stages it is declared that Turkey’s opening to Africa is for the development of the weak and small states of the continent and for an equal partnership; while the foreign policy pursued in Africa does not fit with the rhetoric in many senses. Turkey’s policy towards Africa has both similarities and differences declared in the international arena.The implications of Turkey’s African policy started with the declaration of ‘Year of Africa’ in 2005 and non-permanent membership at the U.N. Security Council in 2009. During its Security Council membership, Turkey developed its engagement with the continent day by day, by opening embassies and maintaining active commitments with the Turkish International Cooperation and Development Agency (TIKA) and The Turkish Confederation of Businessmen and Industrialists (TUSKON); military support for peacekeeping and anti-piracy operations; increasing direct flights from Turkey to the African states. Ankara’s increasing interest has resulted in an export-import boom up to 2010. These trends suffered a hiccup from the Arab Spring and despite the decline in trading volume, Turkey is resolved to maintain relations with the continent and the cases of Somalia and Libya have proven great opportunities to contribute to peacemaking and peacekeeping in Africa. The drought in the Horn of Africa, specifically in Somalia, has been another case in which Turkey has made significant contributions.Several questions arise from the 10-year transformation of Turkey’s Africa policy: “What do all those openings mean?” “What are the limits?” “What are the pros and cons for Turkey in the continent?” “How realistic are the means and the ends that Turkey adopted?” and “How Turkey is differentiated from the other powers?” In addition to the inconsistency between the rhetoric and practices of Turkey’s African policy, those questions will be also the other considerations of that paper. Intensifying impact of globalization and the domestic changes are argued to let Turkey to implement strong motives for opening up to Africa. Despite Turkey’s limited capacity and some problematic issues, like supporting Sudanese president Omar al Bashir in the international arena, it has crafted remarkable influence over African politics and markets and has used win-win rhetoric in a successful soft power campaign.During the paper, global attention towards Africa will be discussed and then Turkey’s foreign policy making and Africa’s position in those policies will be taken into consideration. Lastly, Turkey’s strength in the continent in comparison with the other Asian powers will be examined. The foreign policy tools that Turkey uses will be analyzed in detail in order to provide a broader and meaningful perspective of Turkey’s engagement through the arguments and the contradictory parts with the governmental level of discourse will be analyzed. 

 Agricultural land leasing in Ethiopia: Is it land grabbing?

Genet T Jirru

There are so many conferences and debates going on continuously on acquisition in Sub-Saharan African countries. Scholars estimate that three fourth of the land grab hadoccurred in Sub-Saharan African nations. These land grabs have received intense media and academic attention and from August 2008 to April 2010, there were 236 articles in the press about African land deals, generally range from 10,000 to 100,000 hectares, and although some are much larger, they are usually leases, ranging from short-term to 99 years. Scholars and researchers argue that most of these deals happened without understanding the long term impact that these deals may have in the lives of local and indigenous people.Though some researchers agree on that these deals might be beneficial for the people in recipient countries, as increased investment in large scale farming may bring macro-level benefits (such asGDP growth and improved government revenues), and may create opportunitiesfor economic development and livelihood improvement in rural areas, they also argue that as governments or markets make land available to prospecting investors,large-scale land acquisitions may result in local people losing access to theresources on which they depend for their food security – particularly as somekey recipient countries are themselves faced with food security challenges.Ethiopia is one of these countries apparently offered lots of land for foreign investors mainly from Asia and the Middle East. There are a number of Indian Companies that have invested in the horticulture, floriculture and agriculture fields.Researchers and scholars are critical on Ethiopia’s land allocations for investment. Researchers of Oakland Institute even went in to saying that in Ethiopia though more than 3,619,508 ha of land have been transferred to investors, these commercial investments would increase rates of foodinsecurity in the vicinity of land investments. They further said that despiteEthiopia’s endemic poverty and food insecurity, there wereno mechanisms in place to ensure that these investmentscontribute to improved food security.  Though these researchers haven’t mentioned what kind of mechanisms were required. They were also critical in land appropriation, displacement of locals, lack of thorough assessment of impact of such investment etc…There are also other critics who describe theallocation of large-scale agricultural farm to foreign investors as made with no meaningful consultation and no compensation tofarmers for lost farmland,as no contributions of these investments to food security for the poor and marginalized,particularly the indigenous population.For Ethiopia attracting foreign direct investment in agricultural sector means to attract capital from abroad in order to combine it with the excess resources it has,which arethe landand the labor; and also to commercialize small-scale agriculture.Even though there was no any empiricalanalysis done on the economic impact and advantages of such large scale investments in agricultural sector, it is strongly believed thatthese investments would positively contribute to the economic and social transformation of the country in general and the local people in particular.

Energy Resources in East Africa and Emerging Asian Powers

Manendra Sahu

East Africa is emerging as a new destination for energy investments. When energy resources in west and north Africa was aggressively pursued by the international energy companies in the last several decades, east Africa was not at all considered as an investment destinations by energy companies. However, some of the recent discoveries in oil and gas along eastern coast have radically changed views of energy companies. There is a new rush started to carve energy resources in east Africa and players from Asia are not far behind. Indian companies too utilised opportunities to invest in this area along with Asian peers. The present paper looks into opportunities and challenges thrown open by new oil and gas discoveries in east Africa. Would Asian companies be able to compete with multinational oil companies in securing oil and gas asset? What strategy India companies should adopt to secure investment in the region?

  Politics of Uranium in Africa: Sharing the Resources among Asian Powers 

Arvind Kumar

The African continent has considerable stockpile and deposits of uranium. The continent had always seen contest among major powers in resource sharing as far as uranium is concerned. By and large, both China and France have occupied predominant position in uranium mining. Less said the better about Russia and the United States. The other dominant power in Asia, i.e. India, is yet to make satisfactory strides in uranium mining and exploration in Africa.Africa accounts for roughly slightly more than one sixth of the world’s primary uranium mine production. Over the years, Africa has emerged as the most important player in the area of uranium production. According to available data, 18 percent of the world’s primary mine production of uranium comes from Africa with mines in Niger, Namibia, Democratic Republic of Congo and South Africa. Niger and Namibia have been ranked fifth and sixth producing 8.1 percent and 7.6 percent of uranium respectively. Africa’s importance and significance as a major source of nuclear fuel has been well acknowledged in the world. The role of Africa in Nuclear Suppliers’ Group (NSG) has no relevance because a number of countries including Nigeria, Niger, Namibia, Malawi, DR Congo are not members of NSG. South Africa is certainly an active member of NSG. It abides all the regulations enshrined in the NPT and the Pelindaba Treaty on nuclear weapon free zone in Africa. The nuclear trade and commerce in the African continent is conducted outside the legitimate frameworks of the NSG. It has been estimated that approximately 32 per cent of the Uranium ore concentrate supplied into the world market comes from the non-NSG states. The politics of uranium in Africa especially in sharing the resources among Asian powers more particularly India and China need tto be understood in the contemporary environment. China has been able to create its sphere of influence to both NSG and non-NSG members. It occupies a pivotal position in Africa especially in uranium mining and exploration. On the other hand, India has to struggle and make inroads in the current existing circumstances. Even after the NSG waiver given to India, a number of nations in Africa have been showing certain reservations. India needs to maximize its interest and see how best it can mobilize both NSG and non-NSG members for the nuclear fuel supply in the foreseeable future.Niger, Namibia (non-NSG members) and South Africa (NSG member) have an estimated 95 per cent of the uranium on the African continent. India has to augment its nuclear component in its energy security basket. India’s diplomacy in the politics of uranium supply needs to be maneuvered intelligently. India’s entry in Africa especially in the field of uranium mining and exploration has been dead slow. India has been able to develop some understanding with Niger, Gabon, Namibia and Malawi in the last few years since 2007. But, the progress made so far has been less than satisfactory. The politics of uranium in Africa is such that India has to compete with all the heavy weights of the International system – China, Russia, France and the United States. The paper will make a modest attempt in analyzing the challenges before India in competing with other Asian powers in uranium sharing in Africa. It would explore the ways and mechanism by which India can be assured of life time supply of uranium to the nuclear reactors of India. How the nations of Africa will conduct nuclear trade and commerce with India will form a major part of the debate. The probable normalization of India-Africa nuclear relations in the context of the existing nuclear non-proliferation Treaty, the Pelindaba Treaty and their domestic legislation would also be assessed and analysed.

 India’s strategic and Economic Predicaments in Sudan in the Post-Partition Phase

Shaji Sadasivan

India, a new powerhouse in the global economy began to engage with States in Africa in a big way from mid- Nineties, especially in the realm of economy. India’s pursuit for hydrocarbon resources and search for market, along with Africa’s quest for technology, investments and products hastened this process. Though the outcomes of such engagements were mutually beneficial in the beginning, sites of conflict and contestations began to emerge in their ties, especially in the political sphere. For instance, India’s ties with Sudan have thrown up myriad outcomes for both the states with human rights groups challenging the implications of India’s economic activities on the people in the South Sudan. After the partition of Sudan into two sovereign states in 2011, India has had to grapple with a complex scenario as resources and business interests are scattered across both the states. In this context, the proposed paper, while discussing the evolution of relationship between India and undivided Sudan, traces the emerging complexities in ties with Sudan and South Sudan in the contemporary period.

  Mission impossible? Korean Diaspora in Africa, History and perspectives

YongKyuChang

According to Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Korea Republic, ‘Jaeoe-Dongpo’ or‘Haeoe-Gyopo,’a generic term for Korean diaspora, numbers approximately 6,822,720.(MOFAT, 2009)This figure shows that over 10% of Korean population resides overseas. A significant feature is that Korean diaspora is thatevenly dispersed over the world. More than 70% of Korean diaspora is centered in three countries, China(2,336,771), USA(2,102,283) and Japan(912,770). On the contrary, in African, the number is reduced into 11,763, which merely composes about 0.1% of Korean diaspora. Acknowledging that Korea has virtually no historical and cultural relevance to Africa until recently, the number of Korean diaspora in Africa is disappointing.In this presentation, I am going to pursue some features of Korean diaspora in Africa. Generally speaking, Koreanspossess negative attitudes on diaspora or migration. I am arguing that this is due to a unique way of cultural development: Koreanised Confucianism and the negative image on Africa.Korean Confucianism, which is imported from China, has five pillars and among them, two principles,‘Chung’(충, loyalty) and ‘Hyo’(효, filial piety/ancestral benevolence) have governed everyday lives of Korean. These principles have strong bondage to the concept of‘Guk-ga’(Nation) and ‘Go-Hyang’. (a family owned communal land) The premise of two principles is ‘land.’ Koreans have strong feelings of ‘return’ to Go-Hyang after retirement and buried in a family land.Secondly, the image of Africa is not positive in Korea. Simply to say, Koreans do not know about Africa. This is due to the lack of information and education, but the image of Africa is still lagging behind from the world economy. Thus, diaspora to African countries is generally regarded as the migration of‘failed people.’These factors deter Korea diaspora to Africa. It might be said that Korean diaspora in Africa is largely isolated from host communities. Also, invisible hierarchy and discrimination exist among Korean diaspora. I am going to figure out causal relations of these phenomena.Recently, ‘diaspora mission’ emerges as one of the strong motivationsof Korean diaspora. Korean Christianity is a strong power house for Christian missionary activities.’ Korean Christian churches offensively dispatch missionaries to African countries, giving both positive and negative effects. Therefore, we need to understand some features of Christian missionarieswhich begin to occupy a significant number of contemporary Korean diaspora. 

The Contribution of Indian Immigrants to East Africa:  History Missed Her Story

Renu Modi

This paper studies the various facets of the migration history of the Indian immigrant community to East Africa for a multitude of reasons that include; trade, colonialism, the import of indentured laborers, as contract laborers to build the Uganda- Kenya railways and more recently, globalization.  This paper studies labour migrations from a gendered perspective- to the then British Protectorate of East Africa and the contributions made by the people of Indian origin to the economic development of their host countries. The research is premised on primary and secondary data.  It studies inter-alia; the auto biographical accounts of two well known business houses in Uganda- the Mehta and Madhvani families. In the early 19th century, the founders of these two business houses- Nanjibhai Kalidas Mehta and Vithaldas Haridas Madhvani migrated to Africa to escape the famine and poverty in their state of origin, in Gujarat, India.  In the initial years women were left behind as  the means of travel was through the ‘ dhows’ or wooden ships that took almost 4-6 months for one way travel. With improved communication, women too joined the men and travelled to Africa. This paper takes into account the contribution of the Indian immigrants to the economic development of East Africa from the mid nineteenth to the early twentieth century and acknowledges the role of the hidden constituency- the women who accompanied them. This account attempts to analyze ‘her story’ in the trajectory of economic migration or the history of Indian labor migrants to East Africa.



 

African Settlements in India: A Historical Journey



Dr.Manish Karmwar



This paper “African Settlements in India: A Historical Journey” covers various aspects related to Africans who are profoundly assimilated into social fabric of India. Indo-African trade relations are one of the very important segments among others to understand African settlements in different parts of Indian sub-continent. The evidence of African trade in India dates back many centuries. African-Indian trade that existed at least from the 1st century onwards. Abyssinians were trading in South Asia during the Aksumite Empire, from the 1st to the 7th centuries. There was, therefore, free movement of Africans to Asia. While uncovering African-Asian history, we must not overlook the fact that Africans mainly came as slaves. Yet some slaves rose to positions of power and influence through their military capabilities. There are traces of African’s role in socio-political and military life during the period of Delhi sultanate, Nizamshahi, Adilshahi, Qutbshahi, Imadshahi, Mughal India and also in Hyderabad till India’s independence. The study covers the areas where African dispersal is more prominent like Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Daman and Diu, Goa and Andhra Pradesh. It discusses about several Africans who played an important role in different Indian dynasties. Some of the Africans who rose to positions of considerable importance were: Malik Kafur, Malik Amber, Malik Sarwar, Mubarak Shah, etc. Their role in the History of India is significant. The Afro-Indian dynasties of Sachin and Janjira are a reminder of the influence that Afro-Indians wielded in parts of India. While this glory was not to remain forever, the cultural contributions made by Africans are still alive, particularly in music and dance. The study tries to convince the fact and therefore, concludes that Indian culture has been enriched, influenced by the African culture and African Diaspora played a significant role in India. The paper also recognises the fact that trade and the hold over natural resources had been the principal reason behind the age old links between Africa and India.









 

Indian Diaspora as resources towards the Contribution of traditional knowledge in La Reunion 

Dr. Paokholal Haokip

 As the major focus of the conference is to analyse the role of the new external actors in Africa, the relationship between emerging powers and African states. It will be pertinent to explore relatively unknown and unexplored areas of Indian diaspora contribution in La Reunion in terms of the traditional knowledge and cultural values. That can be a determining factor for the evolving nature of relations between emerging powers and Africa in the global scenario for African development.This article will make an attempt to explore the south asian diaspora(particularly India) contribution in terms of traditional knowledge and cultural values. This is a major area of interest that the government and policy makers keep aloof from perusing in the context of Indian diaspora policy. In a relatively hostile or half baked Indian diaspora policy in the francophone region where a substantial section of Indian overseas resides India‐Africa linkages remained limited to only those who are multi-lingual.Secondly it will contextualized in the context of The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2013 that had a plenary session on Heritage and Diaspora wherein there is a slight alteration in Indian government approach to the investment centered diaspora policy to how heritage, the legacy of culture and civilisation binds people of Indian origin across various geographies. Which can act as a resources to the role of external factors in African development.  

 Land Grab and Madagascar

S.N. Malakar 

 India’s Relations with Francophone West Africa: A 21^st Century Perspective 

Vidhan Pathak

In response to the globalisation and restructuring of international economic relations along with the emergence of regional blocks, economic cooperation among developing countries have received increasing attention. The growing engagement between India and Francophone West Africa has acquired new rallying points and priorities in this era of globalization. Most of the economies of Francophone West Africa are going through economic reforms and liberalisation. They are looking for partnerships due to their developmental needs and concerns. They need appropriate technology, equipments and machinery at low cost. India at its present stage of development has attained certain technological and manpower capabilities whose supply price is generally much lower to that of the western sources. Again certain production processes, having been developed in labour surplus market, are comparatively more labour intensive. Therefore, they are found to be of greater relevance by the Francophone West African countries for their present requirements. Endeavours in the area of economic cooperation were particularly significant for the growing appreciation across the Francophone West African region of India’s prowess and its special relevance to them in the fields of small and medium- scale industrial enterprises, and agriculture. The already well-established respect for India’s expertise in the human development sector was also reinforced. Thus, India could be a viable partner for these countries and for this they have approached the Indians. India could contribute significantly to the economic modernisation of these countries in terms of industrialisation and building capacities across the spectrum.India also considers these countries important for a variety of reasons. Diplomatically, cultivation of friendly relations with Francophone West African countries is important to gain support in various international fora, for policies vital to India’s national interest. India has a stake in restructuring of UN and WTO, which needs partnership and cooperation with these countries. Economically, Francophone West Africa provides vast scope for mutually beneficial trade and commercial linkages. These countries had remained the unexplored part of India\\\\\\\'s economic strategy. The concern with oil exploration and cooperation with oil producing zones of the world is acquiring prime importance in India’s trade and foreign policy perspectives. This region has potential to become a sustainable alternative to India’s energy security needs and also provides an opportunity for complementarity of interests between the Francophone West African countries and India on the various aspects of the energy security. A sense of common cause and a shared future is an unbreakable link between India and Francophone West African countries which will extend to facing the new and emerging challenges confronting them in the new millennium. With the above perspective, the present paper focuses on India’s Relations with Francophone West Africa by looking into the various strategic aspects of their relations such as diplomatic, economic and cultural etc.

 India-Africa Relationship: The Need for Broader Dimension

A.S. Yaruingam

 It is a known fact that relationship between India and Africa has changed from idealism to pragmatism since the dawn of 21st century.  The relation that was based on the mythological accounts of sags and ancient travels has turned to trade, commerce and business, the issues that deals with the present day today realities. It is also a fact that the relations between Africa and India are mostly limit at the diplomatic level involving certain business groups. It is also true that the common people of Africa and India hardly aware (Indians) of what are going on Africa and (Africans) what was going on in India. Such a nature of relationship is quite different from Africa’s relations with west. Most of the common people in the west are awareof the day to days’ happenings in Africa-conflict, business, diplomacy, sports, academic, social cultural and so on. This is due to fact that the relationships between the two are based on mass level through the help of mass media. Just look at BBC and CNN! There is comprehensive coverage on African issues such as-social cultural, sport, education, journalism, business and so on. Because of such a nature of relations there is adynamic and sustainable relationship between Africa and the west.  No matter how much African are been tired of the west, they could never turn away from the west due to this very reason. There has been a deep interweaved relations between Africa and the west at the mass level. Such a lively dynamic relationship is missing in the relationship between India and Africa. My paper would argue that in order to make India Africa relations sustainable and more dynamic and vibrant, there is a need of calibrating towards social cultural level involving mass medias. In other words, India Africa relations should not limit only at the diplomatic level focusing on trade and commerce level; it should be extended to the mass level. There is a need for exploring ways and means for spontaneousand free flow of information from Africa to India and from India to Africa; means and ways to have regular interaction people from Africa and India at the mass level or common peoples’ level. This would dispel all prejudices between the people of India and Africa, ultimately paving the way for the smooth and free and frank interaction in all level.Such a kind of relations between India and Africa would bring greatly benefited to both in all fronts.

 Developmental Challenges and Capacity Building: Indian Engagement with Africa 

Jamal M. Moosa

Africa and India have a long history of cordial engagement. These are founded on complementarities and challenges that they face in an ever increasing turbulent world. However these relationships are not exploiting their full potential. Both internal and external dynamics have a critical and crucial bearing on the emerging engagement. There is also a need to factor the larger international context and role of various powers especially emerging powers. Hence it is essential to understand the context of resurgence of Africa for an effectively engagement. The contemporary landscape of international relationship is witnessing an increase of the number of players with significant global imprint. There is a move away from the overlapping of social, political and economic and military hierarchies into a more complex mosaic of interconnection and engagement between many new players.A factor that has hampered the relationship was the drift that occurred in late 1990s and early part of this decade within India towards Africa. However these relations have taken a major positive turn with growing Indian ambition to play a more proactive role in the international arena. Another factor that needs to be kept in mind is how Africa engages with itself. The continent is a not a homogenous monolith. For some countries, pockets of advanced industrial facilities within the continent are a bigger source of competitions than external international players. The critical question is while the rest of the world wants to engage with Africa adopting different approaches, what is the response of the continent to these overtures. In other words, how is Africa engaging with the rest of the world? Are they continuing the old pattern of interaction? Similarly are they following same pattern of engagement with different regions or there are crucial differences?  More importantly what do they expect from us in return.Africa has been engaging with different international players differently. Having broken out of tight linkages with Europe it is trying to leverage its advantages to achieve sustainable development. However if its priorities are not fulfilled it may approach others to provide alternative options. As the number of players has increased the possibilities of alternatives too has increased. Among the challenges that constraint its developmental endeavours is the significant deficit of skills in different sectors. These gaps need to be addressed as enhancement skills and opportunities would allow for mobility and a more equitable society. It will also provide the necessary human resource for manufacturing and value addition of its natural resources within the continent. Partnerships in capacity building and human resource development efforts can be a lever to enhance engagement.If India endeavours to provide these and fill the gaps then the prospects of high degree of engagement on a long-term basis are bright. India own capacity limitations are an additional advantage by providing scope for African participation. In this context the Indian approach to towards Africa has undergone a metamorphosis. The old assumptions have given way to more pragmatic ones. The old INTEC programme continues but the Pan African network has become the show-piece.