Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s landmark visit to Morocco on September 21, 2025, marks the first-ever visit by an Indian Defence Minister to the North African nation, placing India firmly on Africa’s defence industry map.

Symbolically significant, the visit underscores India’s intent to expand strategic engagement with Africa, which has largely remained peripheral to New Delhi’s global outreach. Singh’s arrival in Casablanca to a formal military welcome highlighted the growing importance Morocco attaches to its defence partnership with India, with the local Indian community amplifying the moment as an historic bridge between the regions.

At the centre of the visit is the inauguration of TATA Advanced Systems’ manufacturing plant at Berrechid near Casablanca, India’s first-ever defence production facility in Africa. Dedicated to producing the indigenous Wheeled Armoured Platform (WhAP) 8x8—co-developed with DRDO and already deployed in Ladakh—the facility positions India as a producer for Africa’s expanding defence needs.

With targeted production of 100 vehicles annually and employment for 350 people, the unit will not only localise assembly for Morocco but also keep critical subsystems integrated in India, reinforcing the “Aatmanirbhar Bharat” initiative while extending India’s industrial footprint abroad.

This achievement also reflects Morocco’s ambition to evolve into a defence hub bridging Europe and Africa, wherein India emerges as a reliable alternative to traditional Western, Chinese, and Turkish suppliers.

Equally pivotal is the MoU on defence cooperation to be signed during the visit, laying the foundation for institutional exchanges, joint training, and stronger industry linkages. This signifies a calibrated deepening of ties, beyond arms trade, moving towards structured defence diplomacy.

Naval cooperation too is set to expand, with the Indian Navy already making regular Casablanca port calls—a point that dovetails with India’s quest for a maritime presence in North Africa and the broader Mediterranean. The visit thus projects both land and sea dimensions of cooperation, underscoring India’s multi-domain strategic outreach.

The momentum builds upon a decade-long diplomatic trajectory, beginning with King Mohammed VI’s meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015, steadily expanding into defence projects. Morocco has already procured 92 six-wheeled military trucks and heavy-duty defence logistics vehicles from TATA in 2024, creating the precedent for deeper industrial partnerships.

Now, with the WhAP assembly line in place, Morocco becomes both a customer and a co-producer, carrying significant symbolism for India’s defence exports.

For New Delhi, the long-term strategic dividend lies in Africa’s rapidly growing defence market—estimated at tens of billions of dollars—where competition with China and Turkey is intensifying, and where positioning early partners like Morocco offers influence, leverage, and opportunity.

Agencies