Abidjan, October 8 (Daily Kiran) : India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met with Côte d’Ivoire’s Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Tene Birahima Ottara in Abidjan on October 8, 2026. The two leaders discussed strengthening cooperation in defense and counter-terrorism efforts.
Jaishankar expressed his pleasure at the meeting via a post on social media platform X, stating, “We talked about our growing defense partnership based on mutual trust, capacity building, and shared interests.”
The discussions included opportunities for enhancing collaboration in defense and anti-terrorism sectors, focusing on training, capacity development, and increasing connections between the institutions of both nations.
Jaishankar arrived in Côte d’Ivoire after a successful visit to Ghana earlier in the week. He also met with the country’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Nialé Kaba. The leaders engaged in extensive talks about advancing partnerships in various areas, including trade, investment, infrastructure, agriculture, healthcare, and people-to-people relations.
He emphasized that India’s people-centric cooperation would align with Côte d’Ivoire’s needs and priorities. Both parties also discussed strengthening their collaboration on international platforms.
Additionally, Jaishankar engaged with former participants of the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) program. This initiative is a key bilateral capacity-building program run by the Ministry of External Affairs, partnering with over 160 countries across Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean.
After the meeting, Jaishankar noted, “We highlighted that India’s capacity-building initiatives are progressing in accordance with the needs and priorities of our partner countries. These initiatives are also reinforcing the ties between our societies.”
He thanked Kofi N’guesan, Côte d’Ivoire’s Minister of National Education, Literacy, and Technical Education, for attending the program. N’guesan is also a former ITEC participant. Earlier this week, India and Côte d’Ivoire discussed opportunities for collaboration in skill development, vocational and technical education, knowledge sharing, and capacity building.
These discussions occurred during a meeting between Indian Ambassador Ramesh Babu Lakshmanan and Minister N’guesan Kofi in Côte d’Ivoire.
Leave a Comment