The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has heralded an increasingly fragmented world that is fuelling protectionism and playing into nationalist narratives. While India is trying to cope with the rising number of cases, Europe is caught in a struggle to retain its values. Despite these challenges, India and European Union (EU) remain natural partners that share universal values like democracy, pluralism, inclusivity, respect for international institutions, freedom, and transparency. One region where India and EU can collaborate is the African continent where both have independently adopted public policies in recent years making Africa one of their priorities. Although both have specific interests in Africa, a cross-analysis of the three regions indicates multiple complementarities between India and Europe vis-à-vis Africa, and that there are good reasons to initiate triangular cooperation in certain sectors. In this backdrop, on 26 February 2021, a virtual discussion was co-hosted by the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), India and the Freie University in Berlin, Germany. The topic of the discussion was ‘Indian and European engagement patterns in Sub-Saharan Africa.’ The discussions began with the idea of continuity in India–Africa relations, a relationship that has been friendly, collaborative, and rooted in a sense of common solidarity.
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