Old Ties, New Times

As India courts Africa with history and technology, its relationship with Ethiopia offers a revealing test of Southern diplomacy.

When Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Ethiopia earlier this month, the warmth of his reception said as much about the present as it did about the past. India’s engagement with Africa is no longer framed merely as solidarity among post-colonial states. It is now pitched as a strategic and technological partnership which is self-consciously different from the hard-edged approaches of China or the episodic attention of the West. Ethiopia, long described as the ‘gateway to Africa,’ has emerged as a telling case study of this recalibration.

The world’s geopolitical centre of gravity is shifting southwards. Asia and Africa, once treated as peripheral theatres, are increasingly setting the terms of global growth, diplomacy and institutional reform. India, styling itself as the ‘voice of the Global South,’ has invested heavily in this moment by championing African representation in global forums, most notably by backing the African Union’s admission as a permanent member of the G20. That move was widely welcomed across the continent, and nowhere more so than in Addis Ababa, the diplomatic capital of Africa.

Historic Relationship

India’s ties with Ethiopia are among the oldest uninterrupted relationships linking South Asia with Africa. Historical records trace exchanges back nearly two millennia, when merchants from the Indian subcontinent traded silk, spices and textiles for Ethiopian gold and ivory along Red Sea routes. During the Axumite Empire, between the first and sixth centuries AD, the port of Adulis served as a crucial node in this Indo-African commerce, binding two ancient civilisations through trade and culture rather than conquest.

History also provided moments of solidarity under arms. In the 16th century, forces linked to Portuguese India aided Ethiopian rulers against invading armies. During Ethiopia’s struggle against Italian occupation in the late 1930s and early 1940s, Indian soldiers serving under the British flag played a notable role in its liberation. After independence, diplomatic relations were formalised in 1950, placing India and Ethiopia on parallel trajectories as post-imperial states navigating Cold War pressures and development challenges.

What distinguishes the present phase is the scope and ambition of cooperation. India today is Ethiopia’s second-largest foreign investor, with more than 675 Indian companies operating across manufacturing, pharmaceuticals and agriculture. Indian investments exceed $6.5 billion and are estimated to generate employment for over 75,000 Ethiopians. Bilateral trade reached roughly $550 million in 2024–25, heavily tilted in India’s favour.

Beyond economics lies a more strategic wager. India is positioning its digital public infrastructure as an exportable model for the developing world. Agreements signed during Modi’s visit include support for Ethiopia’s digital transformation, anchored by plans for a major data centre. Indian officials have framed this as a ‘turning point’ not merely for bilateral ties but as a template other African countries might emulate.

Artificial intelligence is central to this vision. India has committed to specialised training programmes for Ethiopian youth, betting that technological capacity, rather than raw aid, will shape the next phase of development. This echoes New Delhi’s broader pitch to Africa: development without dependency, capacity-building without control.

Security cooperation, too, is deepening. India has offered assistance in maritime security, defence training and peacekeeping - areas of acute concern for Afro-Asian states navigating unstable neighbourhoods. The first joint defence cooperation meeting, held in October 2025, signalled a quiet but consequential expansion of military ties. India’s experience in United Nations peacekeeping, including its past role during Ethiopia’s internal conflicts, lends credibility to these efforts.

Culture remains the connective tissue. An Indian diaspora of around 2,000 - many of them educators - continues a tradition dating back to the late 19th century, when Indian teachers helped shape Ethiopia’s modern education system. More than 150 Indian professors currently work in Ethiopian institutions. Direct flights between New Delhi and Addis Ababa, and eased visa access for business and education, have further thickened people-to-people ties.

None of this guarantees success. Ethiopia’s internal strains, India’s own economic constraints, and Africa’s growing wariness of external suitors all pose risks. But the relationship reflects a broader truth: power in the 21st century is as much about trust and memory as it is about money and muscle.

India’s bet is that a partnership grounded in shared history, technological cooperation and institutional reform can endure where others falter. Ethiopia, with its ancient past and contested future, offers both an opportunity and a test. If this experiment succeeds, it may yet illuminate a path for South–South diplomacy in an unsettled world.

(The writer is a researcher and expert in foreign affairs. Views personal.)