"Soft power efforts, hard power gains" : India's economic diplomacy towards Africa using Nigeria and Kenya as examples

Economic diplomacy and commercial diplomacy as soft power tools plays an increasingly significant role in the enhancement of national economic goals and enhanced economic relations between countries. Economic diplomacy is carried out by a government to support its foreign policy goals or diplomacy (or both) by using a wide range of economic and diplomatic tools. The impact of diplomatic efforts to enhance economic relations can be measured through the growth of bilateral trade and FDI over a period of time, as well as the removal of trade barriers and increased cooperation in international organisations like the World Trade Organization. "Foreign policy is the outcome of economic policy, and until India has properly evolved her economic policy, her foreign policy will be rather vague.." -­ Jawaharlal Nehru India's foreign policy has increasingly become a function of its economic policy, and economic goals. As these goals have expanded to focus on different regions across the world, India's economic diplomacy toolkit has expanded to allow for the participation of more actors, in various arenas. No longer can India rely solely on the soft power it derives from a shared history and shared foreign policy principles. With bilateral and multilateral economic cooperation expanding across the globe, there is increasing pressure on countries to harvest both soft, hard and smart power efforts to build relations that serve their domestic economic and foreign policy goals. This thesis examines the concept and practice of economic diplomacy as it relates to India and Africa. While the existing literature on the subject is extensive, it is lacking in the analysis of country-­level exploratory studies, and comparisons on a regional level across the African continent. More specifically, it serves as an attempt to demonstrate the nuanced nature of India's economic diplomacy efforts in Africa. This study examines aspects of the economic diplomacy of India as it relates to Nigeria and Kenya, with the aim of investigating how different economic diplomacy efforts have translated into strengthened economic relations and benefits. These efforts are measured through the contribution of both state activities by the Ministry of External Affairs, and non-­state entities such as business organisations and the diaspora. These benefits are measured in the study through trade flows and foreign direct investment data. The discussion makes the conclusion that economic diplomatic efforts between strong regional economies can translate into enhanced trade and investment relations, and that India's efforts in this regard can be considered nuanced and vastly different in different regions in Africa