India and Benin discuss growing economic and development cooperation
India and Benin are looking at closer cooperation in areas like agriculture, education, and defence.
 
The issue was discussed when visiting Republic of Benin Foreign Affairs Minister Olushegun Adjadi Bakari met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on December 18, 2023.
 
"Delighted to welcome FM @shegunbakari of Benin today. Discussed growing our political, economic and development partnership. Spoke about collaboration in agriculture, education, textiles and defence. Exchanged views on global issues and UN reform," EAM Jaishankar wrote on social media platform X. 
 
The minister was on a three-day visit to India from December 16 to 18, 2023. He was accompanied by Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries Gaston Cossi Dossouhoui and other senior officials.
 
During their meeting, the two leaders discussed bilateral relations and exchanged views on various regional & multilateral issues of mutual interest, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Tuesday (December 19, 2023).
 
The Beninese side especially appreciated the inclusion of the African Union as a permanent member of G20, the MEA added.
 
The visiting Minister of Foreign Affairs of Benin also met Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal.  Additionally, the visiting delegation had meetings with Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) on deepening trade and investment links between the two countries.
 
BUILDING ON STRONG BILATERAL TIES

 In 2021-22, India emerged as Benin’s largest trading partner with two-way trade touching USD 1.1 billion. The major items of India’s exports were rice, pharmaceutical products, electrical machinery, cotton, and automobiles, particularly two and three-wheelers.
 
India has been supporting Benin’s efforts in Capacity building under Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Programme since 1964. India regularly offers training slots under ITEC to Benin annually. Beninese officials regularly attend short to medium terms training programmes in diverse subjects ranging from IT to Parliamentary studies in India.
 
The strengthened India-Benin relations are set to boost development cooperation and economic engagement.