India is set to host a summit with leaders from Africa's 54 countries in New Delhi.
Prime minister
Narendra Modi is understood to have specifically directed the ministry of external affairs (MEA) to begin preparations for such a summit, to join both the US and China, who are aggressively pumping money into the continent, widely seen as a key future global economic engine.
African destinations Nigeria, Angola, Algeria, Egypt, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea and Sudan have become all the more important for the supply of crude oil and gas.
Both China and India are already locked in competition to secure sea lanes in the Indian Ocean Region. Over the past year, China has secured docking rights for commercial and naval shipping to conducting naval patrols and joint training exercises with countries in the region.
The Summits have become a platform where the
Government of India and African partners identify areas of cooperation, and where such cooperation exists, monitor and expand it.