Why India And African Union Have Postponed The India-Africa Forum Summit

India and African Union have postponed the fourth India-Africa Forum Summit in Delhi due to mpox health emergency in parts of Africa. The summit, scheduled for May 28-31, was delayed to ensure full participation from African leaders. The event had already faced earlier postponements because of Ebola and Covid-19. Fresh dates will be announced later

New Delhi: India and the African Union have agreed to postpone the fourth India-Africa Forum Summit (IAFS-IV), which had been scheduled to take place in New Delhi from May 28-31. The two sides issued a joint statement to confirm the development, describing it as an 'evolving health situation' in parts of Africa, though neither the ministry of external affairs nor the African Union Commission specified the nature of the outbreak.

The public health concern referenced in the statement is widely understood to relate to the ongoing mpox situation on the continent. Africa’s Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) declared mpox a public health emergency of continental security in August 2024, a designation that the WHO followed with its own declaration of a public health emergency of international concern.

Summit delayed since 2015

Since 2015, the Summit has been repeatedly delayed – first by the Ebola crisis in West Africa in 2019, then by Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and now by fresh health concerns. The last IAFS was held in New Delhi in October 2015.

It must be noted that New Delhi had invested considerable diplomatic and logistical effort to revive the summit. The external affairs minister, S Jaishankar, unveiled the logo, theme and official website of IAFS-IV on April 23.

The theme chosen was “IA Spirit: India Africa Strategic Partnership for Innovation, Resilience, and Inclusive Transformation.”

An India-Africa Business Dialogue and Exhibition, involving industry bodies including the Confederation of Indian Industry, FICCI, ASSOCHAM and the PHD Chamber of Commerce, had been organised for May 29 to 31 in New Delhi.

The decision to postpone was taken following consultations between the government of India, the chairperson of the African Union and the African Union Commission.

As per the joint statement, both sides emphasized the importance of ensuring full participation and meaningful engagement from African leaders and stakeholders – participation that would be compromised if the summit proceeded amid a public health emergency.

The joint statement said fresh dates would be “finalized through mutual consultations and communicated in due course,” a formulation that leaves the timeline open-ended.

India has completed over 200 development projects across Africa in sectors ranging from irrigation and power generation to manufacturing and railways.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, it supplied medical aid to 32 African nations under the Vaccine Maitri initiative, and the Serum Institute of India partnered with South Africa’s Aspen Pharma to establish the continent’s first vaccine manufacturing facility in Durban.

India’s successful push to secure the African Union a permanent seat in the G20 during its 2023 presidency has been credited with adding fresh momentum to the relationship. The previous three summits were held in New Delhi in 2008, in Addis Ababa in 2011, and again in New Delhi in 2015.