A seminal report launched on Monday at the Embassy of India in Addis Ababa calls for a fundamental rethinking of Africa-India relations, casting the partnership as a central pillar of Global South cooperation at a moment of accelerating geopolitical change.
“The Africa-India Blueprint for Growth,” co-published by the Centre for Social and Economic Progress and the African Union Development Agency, brings together 32 policy experts from Africa, India, and beyond. The report sets out recommendations across four areas, geopolitics and security, green growth and just transitions, economic diplomacy and digital futures, and health and human capital, arguing that closer coordination is no longer optional but strategic.
The publication arrives against a backdrop of uneven but growing economic ties. India-Africa trade rose from $70 billion in 2015–2016 to $98 billion in 2022–2023 before slipping to $82 billion in 2024–2025. Volumes are now expected to rebound to about $103 billion in the 2025 fiscal year. Indian investments in Africa are estimated at $80 billion, and New Delhi has set an ambitious target of doubling bilateral trade to $200 billion by 2030. India is currently Africa’s third-largest trading partner, after China and the European Union.
Diplomatic momentum has also picked up. In December 2025, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made his first bilateral visit to Ethiopia, a trip both sides described as historic. During the visit, the two countries elevated their relationship from a Comprehensive Partnership, established in 2011, to a Strategic Partnership, signaling deeper cooperation in areas ranging from trade and defense to technology and Global South diplomacy. The visit produced eight memorandums of understanding and agreements, including one to establish a data center at Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
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