At a time when the benefits of globalization may seem to be frittering away, the cooperation between two economies - India and Africa will act as a silver-lining. The Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley stated that the current global political-economic scenario gives mixed feeling even as the emerging economies of Africa and India provide optimism.

In an apparent reference to the protectionist policies of the US and Britain, the Finance Minister said, "There is an increasing possibility of disruptions in the global economy due to inward looking policies of some advanced countries. This has the danger of frittering away much of the gains from the globalization."

Jaitley mentioned that throughout this challenging time, India has remained a bright spot among the major economies. Referring to IMF’s assessment in January 2017, Finance Minister put India growth projection at 7.2 per cent and 7.7 per cent in 2017 and 2018 respectively.

Africa, which produces only 10 per cent of the global food output, has 65 per cent of the global uncultivated arable land mass. "We (India) have to support 17 per cent of World population with 2 per cent of World landmass. But we have met this challenge successfully, and there is a significant scope for the agricultural sector in Africa to benefit from the Indian experience," said Jaitley.

"Africa is approaching an exciting time. India and Africa should navigate through this journey together, and shape their common future. Agriculture is critical to economies of most African Nations, as also to the Indian economy," he said.

Private and public sector enterprises find good potential in infrastructure and agriculture technology in the African region. Central PSE and EPC player under the Ministry of Water Resources, WAPCOS Limited has on-going projects in 41 countries, of which 27 are in Africa having projects in irrigation, power, transmission line, sewage treatment plant among others.

"In Africa, we are working in some of the most difficult areas of Mali, Chad, Senegal, Niger, Nigeria, which are French speaking regions. The opportunity is immense because there is a lot of funding available for infrastructure projects. But bankable projects are not available. We try to fill this gap by offering our services to Banks and for lines of Credit for Govt of India. Prepare DPRs and feasibility reports so that investments can take place," R K Gupta, chairman & Managing Director, WAPCOS told BusinessLine.