India steps up Africa outreach as Modi holds talks with leaders from the continent

Months after postponing the India-Africa Forum Summit because of the Ebola crisis, New Delhi has started a broad-based dialogue with African countries, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi engaging multiple African leaders on the sidelines of the 18th BRICS Summit that concluded on Sunday (September 12, 2026).

Mr. Modi hosted Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali on Saturday (September 12, 2026), during which the two leaders discussed regional and global developments, and he met South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Sunday.

At the meeting between the Prime Ministers of India and Ethiopia, the External Affairs Ministry said, “The two leaders held discussions aimed at further strengthening the bilateral Strategic Partnership. They reviewed progress across key sectors, including economic cooperation, defence and security partnership, and capacity building.”

In his remarks at the BRICS Summit, the Ethiopian Prime Minister had pitched his country as a frontrunner in digital public infrastructure in Africa and urged the world to prepare to deal with “disruptions”. He said, “Africa should help build the next generation of AI. That requires research, computing capacity, skills and institutions able to lead that work.”

BRICS Summit 2026 September 13 updates

Mr. Modi met President Ramaphosa of South Africa on Sunday (September 13, 2026) and reviewed the state of bilateral relations between their two countries. The New Delhi Declaration issued on Saturday (September 12, 2026) had taken note of the racial injustice that Africans have suffered historically, and also of the Brazilian-South African plan to start an “international panel on inequality”. The declaration also referred to decolonisation and Asian-African solidarity as displayed in the Bandung conference of 1955. It also particularly mentioned the South Africa-initiated legal process at the International Court of Justice against Israel for its military campaign in the Gaza Strip. Acknowledging South Africa’s leading role in holding Israel accountable, the New Delhi Declaration said the proceedings “reaffirmed Israel’s legal obligation to ensure the provision of humanitarian aid in Gaza.”

In his discussion with Mr. Ramaphosa, Mr. Modi reviewed the “multi-faceted strategic partnership” between India and Africa. “The two leaders exchanged views on a range of global issues of mutual interest and agreed to maintain close coordination in multilateral fora,” said the External Affairs Ministry in a statement.

India-Africa Forum

India had also invited the President of Burundi, Evariste Ndayishimiye, in his capacity as the Chairperson of the African Union, to the BRICS Summit, and Mr. Modi hosted him for talks on Sunday (September 13, 2026) and discussed the possibility of hosting the India-Africa Forum Summit “early”.

A statement issued by the External Affairs Ministry said the two sides acknowledged “India-African Union partnership is a key pillar of cooperation within the Global South”. President Ndayishimiye acknowledged India’s assistance to African health authorities in dealing with the Ebola crisis, and Prime Minister Modi appreciated Africa’s successful handling of the outbreak. The Ministry said that “agricultural modernisation, healthcare and capacity-building initiatives” were discussed during the meeting.

Mr. Modi on Sunday (September 13, 2026) also met dignitaries from Uganda and Nigeria — both invited to the New Delhi BRICS summit as “partner countries”. He met Vice President of Uganda Jessica Rose Epel Alupo and reaffirmed India’s support for the country’s ‘Vision 2040’ for a prosperous Uganda. The discussion covered technology partnerships, capacity building, investment facilitation, and private sector collaboration between the two sides. Mr. Modi also met the Vice-President of Nigeria, Kashim Shettima Mustapha and discussed initiatives in trade, defence, agriculture, health and digital technologies.