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UTENRIKS-Internasjonale forhold - utenriks- og sikkerhetspolitikk og norske interesser

Indias Footprint in Africa: South-South Cooperation and the Politics of Gifts and Reciprocity

Alternative title: India fotavtrykk i Afrika: Sør-sør samarbeid og politiske konsekvenser av gaver og forventninger

Awarded: NOK 5.5 mill.

Africa is now attracting renewed interest and rivalry among major world powers. Indeed, some even claim that there is a "new scramble for Africa" involving major Western powers and new and emerging powers such as China and India who are all vying for the continent's attention. An important channel of Indian engagement with African countries has been through the mechanisms of South-South Cooperation (SSC), which allows India to showcase its ability to develop Triple A technology (affordable, available, adaptable), and contrast these to Western models. In particular, health and education through ICT have enabled India to distinguish its SSC activities from China. The focus of this project is on India's competitive advantages of ICT, education and health expertise (including COVID-19 vaccines). A key aim is to better understand how SSC activities shape perceptions and influence of India's influence in three (similar, yet different) country contexts of Senegal, Malawi and Mozambique. Findings: India has stepped up its global ambitions and foreign policy re-engagement with African countries in recent years and it is now the third largest export destination and the fifth largest investor on the continent. While it plays catch-up with China?s commanding presence in Africa, India has signed numerous new bilateral agreements. It has also strengthened its diplomatic presence and is actively furthering trade, infrastructure and private sector investments. In our research, together with our partners at the University of Mumbai, we find that India appears well-poised to share its digital capabilities for improved and affordable access to universal healthcare. New Delhi has revamped its tele-medicine and online video consultation infrastructure on the continent. This offers a cost effective and safe option for treating contagious diseases. India?s expertise in affordable healthcare has assumed increased significance during the ongoing pandemic. New Delhi is already reaping the benefits of an ambitious diplomatic initiative to deliver Made-in-India vaccines to developing countries. India is one the largest producers of drugs globally and manufactures 60% of the world?s vaccines. Many African countries have purchased or received these as gifts. New Delhi?s capacity and willingness to produce and share COVID-19 vaccines have further boosted the country?s diplomatic heft and recognition as a global power even though the second COVID-19 wave in May 2021 resulted in India deciding to stop exports of vaccines. This decision has dented India?s reputation in Africa although we expect India to bounce back as soon as vaccine deliveries resume. Since 2018, the India-Africa partnership has been based on a set of principles. These have emphasised ?local priorities?. They call for joint efforts to reform global institutions, combat climate change and fight global terrorism. They also highlight capacity building for agriculture, education, digital technology and cooperation on peacekeeping and maritime issues. How and to what extent might Africa benefit from India?s growing interest? We identify three broad sets of health-related opportunities and benefits that may shape the future of India-Africa relations. The first relates to India?s formidable reputation as the ?pharmacy of the world?. It has actively contributed to meeting global demand for vaccines, over the counter medicines and low-cost generic drugs. The relatively low manufacturing costs make Indian products affordable throughout the world. Southern and western regions of Africa are the largest importers of Indian medicines. These include antiretroviral (ARV) drugs that cost only a fraction of those produced by Western companies. The second relates to capacity building and collaboration in the health sector. Leading Indian healthcare providers are collaborating with African partners. Some have opened or plan to open speciality hospitals across Africa. With its state-of-the-art medical facilities, which offer services at competitive costs, India has also emerged as an attractive destination for ?medical tourism?. The third relates to India?s active ?medical diplomacy?. Africa?s reliance on a cheap supply of essential medicines in addition to an affordable COVID-19 vaccine is only likely to increase in the near future. But Africa?s success in containing pandemics such as Ebola offers lessons to India, too. Numerous additional lessons on disease control from African countries can also be scaled up to improve India?s health sector. Together with our partners at the University of Malawi, we have begun studying the tele-education component of the Pan-African E-Network (PAEN) that India implemented at Chancellor College in Malawi. We have conducted numerous interviews with relevant stakeholders, including members of the Indian diaspora. However, we have thus far not been able to find adequate information on the tele-medicine component of the PAEN.

The purpose of this study is to examine India's global ambitions and recent foreign policy re-engagement with countries on the African continent. Through an interdisciplinary and qualitative approach, our goal is to better understand how India, with the help of its private sector, strategically performs its own version of South-South Cooperation (SSC). While most studies of India in Africa concentrate on official lines of credit, major infrastructure projects, and the cultural influence of Bollywood and yoga, our focus is the Pan African e-Network Project (PAEN), which combines India's competitive advantages and soft power strengths -- ICT, education and health expertise. The overall goal is to better understand the modalities and impact of India's soft power strategy and discern how India and its African partners discursively assert, enact and reciprocate the symbolic regime of SSC. The study aims to better understand perceptions and influence of India's soft power in three similar (yet different) country contexts of Senegal, Malawi and Mozambique. In trying to understand the long-term interactions between asymmetric powers and how 'solidarity' as a resource is built by an emerging power like India, we will apply a novel and interdisciplinary approach to study SSC that combines the concept of soft power with gift theory. To what extent does the power of SSC gifts, and the historical legacies that underpin them, shape Indian foreign policy and motivations for re-engagement with Africa? How do the Indian public and private sector actors project the idea of benevolence, mutual benefit, moral motivation and 'care' for Africa through ICT and health services in the PAEN project? How do African countries perceive India's efforts to deliver knowledge and capacity building in SSC, and what do African policymakers believe that India expects in return?

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UTENRIKS-Internasjonale forhold - utenriks- og sikkerhetspolitikk og norske interesser