Prof. Jawaid Iqbal
On December 20, 2024, India dispatched 1,000 metric tons of rice to Lesotho as part of its humanitarian assistance, aimed at bolstering the food security and nutritional requirements of the nation’s population. This action follows the Government of Lesotho’s declaration of a National Food Insecurity Disaster on July 12, 2024, due to a historic drought that resulted in the lowest crop yields since the 2018/19 agricultural season. Lesotho is grappling with significant challenges attributed to the climate crisis, including severe crop failures and substantial livestock losses caused by El Niño-driven droughts. Future projections suggest a continuation of these challenges, with expectations of a warmer, drier climate leading to more frequent and intense droughts and floods. The reduction in snowfall in the mountains, combined with increased runoff rates, is likely to accelerate soil erosion, further depleting soil nutrients.
Like Lesotho, India is also facing the repercussions of an escalating climate crisis. The country is experiencing rising temperatures, intensified monsoons, and unpredictable rainfall patterns, which aggravate drought conditions in the northwest and increase moisture levels in the south, putting immense pressure on already limited water resources. Crops such as wheat and rice are particularly vulnerable to temperature increases and water scarcity, with studies indicating significant potential yield reductions that pose a threat to India’s overall food security. Climate change-induced food insecurity is a pressing issue in the Global South, where these regions are disproportionately affected by global warming, particularly in the hotter low-latitude tropical and subtropical zones.
At the COP29 summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, India’s Minister of State for Environment, Kirti Vardhan Singh, remarked, “We in the Global South bear huge financial burdens and losses caused by climate impacts, despite contributing the least to the problem.”
The Significance of Ideology
India’s initiative to provide humanitarian aid to Lesotho demonstrates its recognition of the global inequalities that shape the effects of climate change. This aligns with India’s broader policy discourse on Africa, which emphasizes ideology and moral responsibility. During the inaugural ceremony of the third India-Africa Forum Summit in 2015, Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted that the partnership between India and Africa transcends strategic and economic considerations, rooted in deep emotional connections and mutual solidarity. In his 2018 address to the Ugandan Parliament, he pointed out the universal importance of the “moral principles of independence movements,” stressing that India’s support for Africa’s liberation often came at a cost to its own trade, but that Africa’s freedom was paramount.
Contrary to this ideological and moral dimension, the concept of “minilateralism” suggests that “shared values” ought to be set aside in favor of more focused objectives. This approach replaces the commitment to transforming the global order through multilateralism with more adaptable, short-term strategies. However, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar argues that “India has always been a staunch votary of multilateralism,” cautioning that resistance to UN reform undermines the global order. He views the pragmatic nature of minilateralism as a symptom of an international stalemate that demands resolution.
In Africa, there is a growing sentiment of asserting sovereignty against the Global North. For instance, in late November 2024, Chad and Senegal announced the cessation of their military cooperation agreements with France, calling for the withdrawal of French troops. This decision came in the wake of military coups in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, which resulted in the removal of French forces from those nations between 2021 and 2023. On September 16, 2023, these three countries signed the Liptako-Gourma Charter, creating the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) in response to threats of military intervention and economic sanctions from the pro-Western Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) following the July 2023 coup. A few months after the formation of this defense pact, the countries withdrew from ECOWAS.
Burkina Faso’s President Ibrahim Traore articulated the grievances of the Sahel by stating, “We want a multipolar world and we stand for sovereignty.” This assertive position mirrors Jaishankar’s comments in a virtual address on December 21, 2024, where he emphasized that the “fulcrum” of India’s policy paradigm is a “belief in Bharat,” representing a commitment to fully embodying India’s civilization without allowing others to define it. He differentiated between “independence” and “neutrality,” asserting that “we will act in our national interest and for the global good without feeling pressured to conform.”
Reimagining Global South Leadership
To align with the changing sentiment in Africa, India’s foreign policy should reclaim the concept of the “Global South” from its more neutral interpretations. Scholar Happymon Jacob argues that India represents a “nonideological” Global South, prioritizing national interests over an ambitious “anticolonial solidarity.” Instead of striving for a new global order, India seeks to become a more significant player in the existing status quo. This perspective attempts to persuade the Euro-Atlantic world of the need for reforms rather than challengingly confronting their dominance. However, this moderate vision of the Global South lacks a long-term approach to national interests and seeks temporary relief by urging wealthier countries to support poorer nations without adequately addressing the South’s dependence on the North’s goodwill.
Rather than remaining passive about the existing hierarchical world order, India should bolster its firm ideological vision concerning Africa. Take, for example, the issue of debt. Numerous African nations are confronting severe debt challenges, with Ghana, Ethiopia, Zambia, and Mali already defaulting. As of 2024, Africa’s debt service burden is projected to be $163 billion, while its total external debt stands around $1.5 trillion. During the inauguration of the Third Voice of the Global South Summit in August 2024, Prime Minister Modi proposed a new “Development Compact” aimed at alleviating the debt burden on poorer countries. Another area of synergy lies in traditional medicine, which is culturally significant in both India and Africa, symbolizing a confident “civilization state.” Additionally, as part of the “One Earth, One Family” vision, India provided “Made in India” COVID-19 vaccines to 42 African countries. The inclusion of the African Union as a full member under India’s G20 presidency fosters hope that the principles of sovereignty will continue to enhance India-Africa relations, setting the stage for a fair and multipolar world.
(The author is Vice Chancellor of Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University, Rajouri, J&K)
