By Phapano Phasha
SOUTH Africa remains India’s second-largest sub-Saharan trading partner, with Nigeria being the biggest.
The trade relations between South Africa and India are primarily in the export market of manufactured goods such as motor vehicles, pharmaceuticals, and textiles to South Africa, while India imports large quantities of minerals such as gold, coal, copper, and manganese ore from South Africa.
India has become a manufacturing powerhouse of the world, and South Africa, with its vast natural resources, should be leveraging India for technical and technological support in these areas, particularly by using India’s manufacturing prowess. South Africa cannot sustain exporting raw materials only to buy back the same materials as finished goods.
The Republic of India, a BRICS Plus member country, is located in South Asia and is the seventh-largest country in the world by area and the most populous country globally.
Like South Africa, India was colonised by Britain and was referred to as “the brightest jewel in the British crown”. This was despite the British ruling India as a result of conquest rather than consent. India finally gained independence from British colonialism in 1947 after a long and protracted struggle, part of which was led by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, widely known as Mahatma Gandhi, through his Civil Disobedience Movement of the 1930s.
After independence, India elevated itself from the status of a third-world country to an industrial giant of the modern world. India’s economy is dominated by mining, plantation agriculture, factory industry, utilities, modern transportation, and commercial as well as service enterprises.
Domestically supplied minerals form a crucial part of India’s diversified manufacturing industry, as well as a source of modest export revenues.
Among its mineral resources, iron ore (generally of high quality) and ferroalloys (largely manganese and chromite) are particularly abundant and widely distributed across the country.
Other exploitable metallic minerals include copper, bauxite (the principal ore of aluminium), zinc, lead, gold, and silver. Important non-metallic and non-fuel minerals include limestone, dolomite, rock phosphate, building stones, ceramic clays, mica, gypsum, fluorspar, magnetite, graphite, and diamonds.
Key among India’s mineral wealth are fuel minerals, which far exceed all others combined. Among the fuels, petroleum ranks first in value, followed by coal (including lignite). Coal supplies, especially coking coal, are widespread but are particularly abundant and easy to mine.
This mineral wealth, combined with an industrious population, makes India a force to be reckoned with and a palatable trading partner. It is no wonder that India has become a natural trading partner for both South Africa and BRICS.
Together, BRICS countries represent more than 25% of the global economy and nearly 45% of the world’s population. This status has improved with the recent entry of new members such as Egypt, Iran, Ethiopia, and the UAE, making BRICS a larger and more influential group.
The strategic alliance between South Africa and India, which South Africa should leverage, is based on several factors. These include the inclusion of the African Union as a full member of the G20 during India’s presidency and South Africa’s upcoming hosting of the G20 Summit in 2025. This relationship could be further strengthened through these developments.
Negotiations for a preferential trade area between India and the Southern African Customs Union, which includes South Africa, are ongoing. A successful agreement would significantly reduce trade barriers, further boosting trade volumes and resulting in preferential access to certain products.
There is also a growing trend in artificial intelligence and technology across all industries, with major US (Silicon Valley) tech companies being led by Indian nationals. Examples include Sundar Pichai (Google), Parag Agrawal (Twitter X), and Neil Mohan (YouTube).
Indians are the second-largest immigrant group in the US, and they dominate the US tech landscape. They are also the most entrepreneurial group of immigrants in the US, with India being the second-largest source of international students in the country. Indian nationals are highly represented in white-collar jobs.
Against this backdrop, South Africa needs to forge closer collaboration with India, particularly in the fields of mining, technology, pharmaceuticals, and renewable energy. Both countries should use their resources as a force multiplier within BRICS to strengthen the Global South agenda.
South Africa has a strong political history with India, dating back to 1893 when Mahatma Gandhi visited South Africa and ultimately founded the Phoenix Settlement in Durban.
India supported South Africa during the anti-apartheid movement, with India protesting South Africa’s treatment at the United Nations in 1946 and ultimately withdrawing its High Commissioner from South Africa in response to the segregation policies.
One of India’s foremost leaders, Jawaharlal Nehru, advocated for the advancement and adoption of resolutions within the United Nations condemning South Africa’s racial policies.
It is within this context that South Africa, being the African country with the largest population of people of Indian descent since the 1800s, should strengthen and position itself as a key Indian ally in all spheres of the economy, life, culture, and politics.
* Phapano Phasha is with the Centre for Alternative Political and Economic Thought, with a focus on The Global South and BRICS Plus Countries. The views expressed here are her own.
** The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the Sunday Independent and IOL.