New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday said India's development partnership with Africa will have a strong focus on digital, green, healthcare, food security, and water.

Speaking at the inaugural session "India-Africa: Synergies for ONE Growth" of CII-EXIM Bank India Conclave, Jaishankar said, "India's development partnership with Africa will have a strong focus on digital, green, healthcare, food security and water, in tune with the pressing priorities of Africa."

The 18th CII-EXIM Bank India Conclave on India-Africa Growth Partnership is jointly organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and EXIM Bank of India, in New Delhi.

Recent Indian experiences in Africa, including India's digital delivery of public goods, deployment of green technologies, Covid response and healthcare efforts, among others have been impactful and will foster inclusive development in Africa, he added.

Referring to the significant growth in India-Africa bilateral trade flows, Jaishankar said the implementation of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) will pave the way for increased investments by Indian companies in Africa. "India is already among the top five large investors in Africa and I am confident that this will grow in the coming times," he added.

Jaishankar stated that India is committed to sharing experiences and know-how for facilitating Africa's energy transition and encouraged the African countries to join the Lifestyle for Environment (LiFE) movement launched by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Further, he also urged Africa to promote the cultivation and consumption of millets in line with the UN Year of Millets, which Prime Minister Modi again proposed.

Jaishankar also stated that Africa occupies an important place in India's Foreign Policy and during the last nine years, this has been consciously stepped up under the direction of PM Modi.

"Our ties are not transactional but represent the solidarity of a shared struggle. Africa, therefore, occupies an important place in India's foreign policy. During the last 9 years, this has been consciously stepped up under the direction of PM Modi," EAM said.

Meanwhile, General C.G.D.N Chiwenga (Retd), Vice President, Republic of Zimbabwe, noted that it was a boon to have deep bilateral relations amidst the current geopolitical tensions and the pandemic. He also noted that the implementation of the AfCFTA would trigger investments, and develop the tourism sector, agriculture, manufacturing, etc.

Vital Kamerhe Lwa Kanyiginyi, Deputy Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo, who was also there at the event, stated that the Democratic Republic of Congo has been preserving its forest cover, rich with mineral resources and has the potential to generate hydropower which can be utilised for accelerated development. He welcomed Indian businesses to participate in the construction of rail lines and highways connecting the remotest areas of the African continent.

R Dinesh, President, CII, recommended expanding the Indian bank presence, strengthening healthcare cooperation, enhancing online education and digital partnerships, and prioritising green energy collaboration including scaling up lines of credit for green projects and sharing knowledge and R&D outputs to deepen the India-Africa partnership.