Liberian Foreign Minister Visits India to Deepen Global South Ties

Liberia’s Foreign Minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti has arrived in New Delhi for a two-day official visit aimed at strengthening India-Liberia relations. The visit also highlights deeper cooperation under the Global South partnership.

The Liberian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Sara Beysolow Nyanti, reached New Delhi on August 13 to pay a two-day official visit and enhance bilateral ties between India and Liberia. Her delegation is likely to hold discussions with the Minister of External Affairs, Dr S Jaishankar.

This is a visit at a time when India is widening its engagement with countries of Africa and has enhanced cooperation amongst the developing world countries. "The visit of the Liberian Foreign Minister is an important occasion to consolidate and further foster the friendly and close relationship between India and Liberia," the Ministry of External Affairs had stated.

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Nyanti's visit came concurrently with a Liberian parliamentary delegation in India as part of the South-South Peer Learning Mission, with the delegation led by Ellen A Attoh-Wreh. The delegation is on a trip to India from August 10- 15 under an IBSA-backed programme focusing on governance and women's political representation.

Earlier this week, Jaishankar met the visiting Liberian parliamentary delegation and reaffirmed the commitments India has made toward achieving a deeper Global South Partnership; peer learning sessions provide for parliamentarians to visit India and study Indian initiatives and institutions.

India and Liberia have had Diplomatic relations since 1975. The ties between both nations are strengthened by various sectors including trade, investment, mining, agriculture, health, pharmaceuticals, education and capacity building besides people-to-people ties.

Capacity-building activities have also been central to the India-Liberia interaction, with Indian institutes being involved in various aspects of skill development and knowledge-sharing among public officials in Liberia, while cooperation in areas of health care, education and agriculture has also contributed to the larger development engagement between the two countries.

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 The two nations are also engaged in global peace initiatives. India had provided personnel to the United Nations mission in Liberia and an all-women, all-Indian police force deployed to the country at the time.

This led to positive sentiment for India in Liberia and cemented its long-standing relations with it. This visit is expected to provide a suitable moment for both nations to discuss ongoing collaborations and chart the way forward for future engagement, which can contribute towards economic development assistance and exchanges in topics of mutual concern between both nations.