Union Minister of Education and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Dharmendra Pradhan, has flagged off Gabon’s first Agri-SEZ project from New Delhi. The initiative, which will see 30 farmers and 20 B.Sc./M.Sc. Agri and B.Tech/M. Tech Engineering students from the Gajapati district traveling together as agri-technical and technical consultants for the agriculture SEZ, aims to enhance food security and self-sufficiency in Gabon.
Pradhan commended the India-Africa relationship, which has gone from strength to strength under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, recording more than 35 high-level visits from India and more than 100 similar ones from Africa. The minister also mentioned that development partnership is a key pillar in India’s African policy, highlighting that India has extended concessional loans of over USD 12.3 bn to Africa and $700 mn of grant assistance for development projects in various sectors.
On India’s G20 Presidency, he added that it has enabled India to amplify the voice and concerns of the Global South and developing countries, strengthening India-Africa relations. Moreover, Gabon and other African countries have much to gain from India’s development journey and recent initiatives like the Aspirational Districts Program, according to Pradhan. Lastly, he mentioned India-Africa’s long-standing relations in the areas of education and skill development.
