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PM Addresses the First India-Africa Forum Summit
New Delhi, April 09, 2008
The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh announced a Duty
Free Tariff Preference Scheme for Least Developed Countries
while addressing the First Indo-Africa Forum Summit in New
Delhi today. Reiterating the belief that only by investing in
the creative energies of our youth the potential of our
partnership will be fulfilled, the Prime Minister proposed
that India and Africa work towards the establishment of an
India-Africa Volunteer Corps that is devoted to development
work. India wishes to see the 21st Century as the Century of
Asia and Africa with the people of the two continents working
together to promote inclusive globalisation, Dr. Singh added.
Following is the text of the Prime Minister’s address on
the occasion:
“I am truly delighted and deeply honoured to have this unique
opportunity to welcome this distinguished galaxy of leaders
from Africa for the first India-Africa Forum Summit.
Excellencies, your presence here today marks the start of a
new chapter in the long history of civilisational contacts,
friendship and cooperation between India and Africa.
Africa is our Mother Continent. The dynamics of geology may
have led our lands to drift apart, but history, culture and
the processes of post-colonial development have brought us
together once again.
For the people of India, Africa is also the land of awakening
of the Father of our Nation, Mahatma Gandhi. The birth of an
independent India in 1947 in turn provided powerful support to
the forces of nationalism and decolonisation in Africa. The
emergence of Ghana as the first independent country in
sub-Saharan Africa in 1957 was followed by the tumultuous
decades of the sixties, seventies, and eighties culminating in
the end of apartheid in 1994 in the very same land that had
created the Mahatma.
Ever since independence, our national leaders led by such
towering personalities as Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and
Rajiv Gandhi have been ardent champions of the cause of
Indo-African cooperation.
We pay tribute to the political leaders and intellectuals of
Africa who fought for Africa’s emancipation, empowerment and
laid the vision of pan-Africanism in the 20th Century.
As I look into the 21st Century, I am convinced that the free
people of a new Africa and a new India will come even closer,
through mutually beneficial relationships based on equality
and fraternity.
We share a common societal commitment to pluralism, to
inclusiveness and to the creation of a world that is fair to
all its inhabitants. Our shared vision of the world should
enable us to work together on the vital challenges facing
humanity. We have coordinated our position in the United
Nations and other international forums. No one understands
better than India and Africa the imperative need for global
institutions to reflect current realities and to build a more
equitable global economy and polity.
The time has come to create a new architecture for our
engagement in the 21st Century. We visualize a partnership
that is anchored in the fundamental principles of equality,
mutual respect and mutual benefit. Working together, the two
billion people of India and Africa can set an example of
fruitful cooperation in the developing world.
The objective of our partnership is to cooperate with all the
countries of Africa, within the limits of our capacities and
capabilities, in their efforts towards achieving economic
vibrancy, peace, stability and self-reliance. Towards this
end, it is our intention to become a close partner in Africa’s
resurgence.
There is much to be gained in sharing our development
experiences. In India we have sought to empower our people by
investing in their capabilities and widening their development
options. Transfer of knowledge and human skills will
strengthen our mutual capabilities. Such exchanges must go
beyond government-to-government interactions and embrace our
civil society, academics, artists and writers. We have
emergent common challenges of food security, energy security,
pandemics, terrorism and climate change. We should have
cooperative mechanisms for exchange of views, consultation and
for working out common strategies for addressing these
pressing issues.
The Delhi Declaration and the Africa-India Framework for
Cooperation that we plan to issue at the end of this Summit
will provide the blueprint for India-Africa dialogue and
engagement in the 21st Century.
We recognize the crucial importance of market access in
ensuring the development dimension of international trade.
Accordingly, I am happy to announce a Duty Free Tariff
Preference Scheme for Least Developed Countries on the
occasion of this Summit. Under this Scheme, India shall
unilaterally provide preferential market access for exports
from all 50 least developed countries, 34 of which are in
Africa. The Scheme will cover 94% of India’s total tariff
lines. Specifically, it will provide preferential market
access on tariff lines that comprise 92.5% of global exports
of all Least Developed Countries. Products of immediate
interest to Africa which are covered include cotton, cocoa,
aluminium ores, copper ores, cashew nuts, cane sugar,
ready-made garments, fish fillets and non-industrial diamonds.
Our cooperation must actively co-opt trade and industry in the
processes of growth and development in Africa. Over the last
few years, India has acquired considerable experience in
undertaking projects in different countries in Africa through
extension of concessional lines of credit by the EXIM Bank of
India.
It is also our intention to enhance the Aid to Africa budget
of the Ministry of External Affairs for implementing projects
in critical areas focusing on human resource development and
capacity building. Over the next 5 to 6 years, we propose to
undertake projects against grants in excess of 500 million
dollars.
We will strengthen local capabilities by creating regional and
pan-African institutions of higher education, especially in
sciences, Information Technology and vocational education and
investment in research and development in renewable forms of
energy, and agricultural development.
We will enhance opportunities for African students to pursue
higher studies in India. As an immediate measure we propose to
double our long-term scholarships for undergraduates,
postgraduates and higher courses and increase the number of
training slots under our technical assistance programmes from
1100 to 1600 every year.
Both India and Africa are blessed with young populations. It
is only by investing in the creative energies of our youth
that the potential of our partnership will be fulfilled. To
harness this vast potential, I propose that we work towards
the establishment of an India-Africa Volunteer Corps that is
devoted to development work. The Volunteer Corps can on a
pilot basis identify projects in the areas of public health,
informal education and women’s empowerment. As we gather more
experience, the scope of activities can be progressively
widened.
India’s commitment to peace, stability and socio-economic
development in Africa and for it to play an ever-increasing
role in international relations is steadfast. The 21st Century
is often described as the Asian century. India wishes to see
the 21st Century as the Century of Asia and Africa with the
people of the two continents working together to promote
inclusive globalisation.
Events in India and Africa in the middle of the 20th Century
changed the world. Today we have a second chance to take
charge of our own destiny, and give new meaning to the concept
of sustainable, equitable and environment-friendly
development. We look forward to hearing your thoughts and
benefiting from your wisdom on how we can together shape a
better life for our future generations.
I would like to once again thank you, Excellencies, for having
accepted our invitation to join us in New Delhi for this First
India-Africa Forum Summit. I wish you a very pleasant stay in
our country.”
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