India, Ivory Coast hold discussions on bilateral relations, trade, investment

India and Ivory Coast held the First Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) on Tuesday, where they discussed strong bilateral relations that exist and reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthening it based on the shared visions, principles and value of democracy.

According to a statement from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Rahul Chhabra, Secretary (ER) in the Ministry of External Affairs and Daouda Diabate, Secretary-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cote d'Ivoire, co-chaired the FOC.

Both sides reviewed the entire spectrum of bilateral relations especially cooperation in key sectors such as trade and investment, automobiles, agriculture, energy, industry, security, healthcare and pharmaceutical as well as development cooperation. They also appreciated the cooperation on COVID-19 related issues, while agreeing to enhance cooperation on fighting the pandemic.

The statement further read that both sides noted that the trade volume between the two countries has been growing, but remained far below their potential. The countries agreed to promote trade and investment in this context.

India and Cote d'Ivoire also decided to strengthen their development partnership through India's lines of credit and buyer's credit arrangements to enhance the capacity of Ivoirian entities in priority areas.

During his visit to Abidjan, Secretary Chhabra called on Cote d'Ivoire Foreign Minister Ally Coulibaly, where the latter expressed gratitude for the constant assistance and solidarity shown by India and specifically mentioned Government of India's gifting of 50,000 doses of Made in India COVID-19 vaccines.

( With inputs from ANI )