India and South Africa agree to scale up bilateral cooperation

India and South Africa today agreed to scale up bilateral cooperation in future technologies, with Artificial Intelligence, Digital Infrastructure and Advanced Manufacturing emerging as key priorities for the next phase of bilateral engagement.

During talks with South Africa Deputy Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Dr Nomalungelo Gina, who called on him accompanied by a high-level delegation, Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh called for taking the relationship beyond traditional research cooperation towards innovation-driven partnerships capable of delivering economic and societal impact at scale.

Holding bilateral talks with Dr. Nomalungelo Gina, Deputy Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation of South Africa, Dr Jitendra Singh said that the next phase of India-South Africa engagement must be shaped by emerging technologies, innovation ecosystems, startup partnerships and industry-linked research. He said the two countries possess complementary strengths that can be leveraged to create affordable, scalable and inclusive technological solutions for the developing world.

The meeting concluded with a shared resolve to build a stronger, future-ready innovation partnership driven by research excellence, technology development, startup collaboration and people-to-people scientific exchanges, with the objective of generating meaningful benefits for both nations and contributing to the broader development aspirations of the Global South.(UPDATED ON 3RD JUNE 2026)