Foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla

NEW DELHI: India is opening 18 new embassies in Africa, to take the total number of Indian missions to 47 out of a total of 54 countries in Africa, foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said on Wednesday. Nine of the 18 new missions have already opened. In terms of India's development cooperation, over two-thirds of its LOCs ( lines of credit ) in the past decade have been offered to African nations.

"Currently 189 projects in 42 African countries, valued at $11.4 billion, are being implemented under Indian LoCs. These projects range from drinking water schemes to irrigation, solar electrification, power plants, transmission lines, cement plants, technology parks, and railway infrastructure," said Shringla, addressing a conference titled Understanding Africa: Continuity and Change.

The picture on trade and investment is encouraging, he said. "India-Africa trade in the previous year was valued at $69 billion, a 12% annual increase. The Duty Free Tariff Preference (DFTP) Scheme announced by India has benefited African nations by extending duty free access to 98.2% of India's total tariff lines. Thirty-eight African nations benefit from the DFTP Scheme. India has become the fifth largest investor in Africa with cumulative investments of $54 billion. Indian investment has created thousands of jobs for local citizens," he said.

