India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met with Brook Taye, chief executive of Ethiopian Investments Holdings, at a meeting held in Addis Ababa on Saturday to explore avenues for broadening investment ties between the two countries. Jaishankar noted his satisfaction at the encounter.
Jaishankar, presiding over a gathering of India's Heads of Mission convened in Addis Ababa, noted that the sessions addressed ways to deepen investment ties between India and Ethiopia, while the broader conference agenda covered trade, connectivity, development partnership, and capacity-building cooperation between India and African nations.
Analysts and officials on both sides have described the India-Africa relationship as grounded in shared development goals, a preference for independent foreign-policy positions, and a broader push toward a multipolar world order.
Posting on X, Jaishankar described wide-ranging talks covering trade, investment flows, connectivity, development partnership, and capacity building. A separate address at the Adwa Memorial Museum in Addis Ababa saw him call for deeper India-Africa ties, greater self-reliance, and reform of multilateral institutions.
Pointing to shared developmental goals, common historical experiences, and a mutual drive toward a more balanced world order, Jaishankar argued that the partnership needed to keep pace with present-day demands. He noted that India and Africa had built a lasting practice of standing together in international forums, one that he said remained active to that day. He called for the relationship to adapt and keep pace with changing times.
Drawing on the long-term development frameworks of both sides, Jaishankar noted that India had set a target of becoming a developed nation by 2047 under the 'Viksit Bharat' vision, while Africa had charted its own trajectory through the goals laid out in 'Agenda 2063'. India has set the centenary of its independence as a target date for that renewal. Jaishankar noted that Agenda 2063 sets out a framework through which Africa has defined the kind of continent its people are working to build.
Bilateral trade between India and Africa has climbed toward the USD 100 billion mark, placing India among the continent's four largest trading partners, according to the minister's statement. A statement attributed to Indian business advocates urged companies to treat Africa as a preferred destination for investment, while deal activity across the continent has touched sectors ranging from manufacturing, telecommunications, and pharmaceuticals to energy, mining, agriculture, infrastructure, financial services, and information technology.
Jaishankar contended that, taken broadly, businesses with Indian ownership had generated jobs at the local level, promoted value-adding activity, and contributed to the strengthening of economies across African nations.
Jaishankar put forward the position that both India and Africa hold an insufficient presence in the bodies that shape global decisions, contending that the current international framework falls short of reflecting their respective interests and that this imbalance warrants correction. India's backing for an overhaul of the United Nations Security Council was restated, with the view put forward that the body falls short both in operational effectiveness and in giving countries equitable representation.
Among the areas Jaishankar drew attention to were prospects for joint work spanning digital governance — covering identity systems, payment infrastructure, financial inclusion, and the delivery of public services — alongside drone technologies, space programmes, and artificial intelligence.
Rooted in centuries of Indian Ocean commerce, a shared passage through colonial rule, and parallel engagement in multilateral diplomacy, the relationship between India and the African continent rests on foundations that stretch well beyond the modern era. Thursday's stop in Ethiopia marked one leg of a three-country African itinerary for Jaishankar, with Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire rounding out the destinations on the trip.
