Q. India-Africa digital partnership is achieving mutual respect, co-development and long-term institutional partnerships. Elaborate.

Model Answer:

India-Africa Digital Partnership

India-Africa digital partnership represents a paradigm shift from traditional donor-recipient relationships to collaborative development. Through frameworks like the India-Africa Forum Summit and Focus Africa Programme, this partnership exemplifies South-South cooperation principles based on equality and shared growth.

The partnership demonstrates mutual respect through:

• Demand-driven approach – African nations identify their technological needs rather than having solutions imposed. Projects like e-VidyaBharati (tele-education) and e-ArogyaBharati (tele-medicine) emerged from African requests.
• No conditionalities – Unlike Western aid models, India’s digital assistance comes without political or economic strings attached, respecting African sovereignty.

Co-development initiatives foster joint innovation:

• Capacity building through ITEC programme has trained over 25,000 African professionals in IT skills, creating local expertise.
• Knowledge exchange in digital payments sees African nations adapting India’s UPI model (Kenya’s M-Pesa integration) for financial inclusion.
• Collaborative projects like Pan-African e-Network connect 48 African countries for education and healthcare delivery.

Long-term institutional partnerships ensure sustainability:

• Centers of Excellence in IT established across Africa (Rwanda, Ghana, Senegal) provide continuous skill development.
• University linkages between IITs and African institutions facilitate research collaboration and student exchanges.
• Digital infrastructure projects include undersea cables (MENA submarine cable) and data centers.

Conclusion: This partnership model counters digital colonialism while aligning with AU’s Digital Transformation Strategy 2020-2030, creating win-win outcomes.