India and Benin held the third round of Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) in Cotonou on June 24-25. The two sides reviewed bilateral relations, including political, trade and economic, defence, development partnership, capacity building, and cultural relations, and discussed ways to further strengthen ties between India and Benin.

The Indian delegation was led by Sevala Naik Mude, Additional Secretary (Central and West Africa Division), the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a press release. For the meeting, the Beninese delegation was led by Frank Armel Afoukou, Permanent Secretary, of Benin’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

In a press release, the MEA said, “During the FOC, both sides reviewed the bilateral relations including political, trade & economic, defence, development partnership, capacity building, cultural relations etc and discussed ways to further strengthen the bilateral ties between the two countries.”

“Both sides also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest and agreed to enhance their cooperation in the multilateral fora,” it added.

The MEA noted that India and Benin have “friendly ties” by virtue of shared principles of democracy and secularism. The discussions between the two sides focused on further promoting developmental cooperation and capacity building in the spirit of South-South cooperation. The delegations of India and Benin agreed to hold the next consultations in New Delhi at a mutually convenient date.

In a press release, MEA stated, “Discussions were focused on further promoting developmental cooperation and capacity building in the spirit of South-South cooperation. The bilateral trade and Indian investment in Benin have been growing steadily and our bilateral trade registered USD 1.34 billion during 2022-23.

“Around 90 Indian or Indian-owned companies are operating in Benin in the fields of automobiles, textiles and food processing in Cotonou, consolidating our economic cooperation and contributing to the Beninese economy,” it added.