Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with his Australian counterpart, Anthony Albanese, on the sidelines of the G20 Summit at Johannesburg in South Africa yesterday. Mr Modi arrived in Johannesburg last evening to attend the three-day G20 Leaders’ Summit. Both leaders expressed satisfaction at the substantial deepening and diversification of bilateral ties, as India and Australia mark five years of their Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The two leaders discussed enhancing bilateral cooperation across a wide range of areas, including defence and security, critical minerals, trade and investment, education, and people-to-people exchanges. Both leaders reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening the global fight against terrorism. Australian Prime Minister also extended his condolences to the families of the recent terror attack in India.
In a social media post, Mr Modi said, during their talks, they emphasized three key sectors, defence and security, nuclear energy and trade, where there is immense potential for ties to grow further. The other sectors discussed included education and cultural exchanges. Prime Minister Modi also held a meeting with the South African multinational internet and technology company, Napers’ chairman Koos Bekker and CEO Fabricio Bloisi. They discussed expanding investments in India’s digital ecosystem, AI, Startup and space sectors and explore new avenues in the consumer market and technology. Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, in a social media post, said, Napers’ success in India reflects ease of doing business and the strength of the Startup ecosystem in India. Later, Prime Minister Modi interacted with Indian origin tech entrepreneurs and members of the Indian community based in South Africa in Johannesburg and called upon them to deepen their engagement with India. In a social media post, the Prime Minister said he had a fruitful interaction with Indian origin tech entrepreneurs and they talked about the work they are doing in sectors such as FinTech, social media platforms, agriculture, education, healthcare, medical devices and more. He called upon them to deepen their engagement with India and work closely with the people of India.
The Prime Minister also met members of the Indian community based in South Africa who are actively working with different community organisations. In a social media post, Mr Modi said they shared their experiences on various issues and were very appreciative of India’s strides across different fields. He urged them to keep up the momentum with which they are enhancing people-to-people linkages. He also asked them to boost the popularity of Indian culture among the people of South Africa, including practices such as Yoga and Ayurveda. Mr Modi also lauded their efforts to help the youth connect with the legacy of Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela.
Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson on social media platform wrote, the Prime Minister appreciated the contribution of over 1.7 million strong Indian diaspora in South Africa towards nurturing the historical bonds of friendship between India and South Africa. The Prime Minister also received a ‘Kalash’ from the Chinmaya Mission, consisting of Shree Anna or millets from India as well as South Africa. He said, This will be placed in the Annapoorna Devi Temple in Durban. Mr Modi also met with the winners of the Bharat Ko Janiye (Know India) Quiz in South Africa. He said this quiz encourages members of our diaspora to learn more about India’s history, culture and more.
