Cape Town: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in the South African city of Johannesburg on Tuesday as he kickstarted the first leg of his two-nation visit.
Notably, PM Modi is in South Africa to attend the 15th BRICS Summit in Johannesburg from August 22-24 at the invitation of the country’s president Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa.
Upon arrival at the Waterkloof Air Force Base, the Prime Minister received a ceremonial welcome. Moreover, the members of the Indian diaspora could be heard chanting 'Bharat Mata ki Jai', 'Vande Matram' as PM Modi landed in Johannesburg.
The largest gathering of heads of state and government from the Global South in recent years will take place during the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg from August 22–24.
BRICS is a grouping of the world economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. The 15th BRICS Summit's Johannesburg Declaration will include the final agreements, according to the Kremlin press office, as reported by Russian news agency TASS.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Brazilian President Lula da Silva have arrived in Johannesburg. This will be Prime Minister Modi's third visit to South Africa. The trip also marks the 30th anniversary of the diplomatic relationship between India and South Africa. The Prime Minister will also interact with the Indian diaspora members in South Africa.
After the interaction, PM Modi will be addressing the BRICS business forum later today. During a special presser yesterday, Foreign Secretary Kwatra stated that a business delegation from India is also travelling to the country to attend the Business Tracks meetings.
Sharing further details about PM Modi's trip, Kwatra said, "For the 15th BRICS Summit, a business delegation from India is also travelling to South Africa to attend the Business Tracks meetings and also the meetings of the BRICS Business Council, BRICS Women Business Alliance and the BRICS Business Forum."
"The Prime Minister's schedule in terms of bilateral meetings with those leaders who would be present in South Africa is still being developed," he added.
The BRICS Business Leaders forum dialogue is taking place at Sandton Convention Centre today. The programme director for the same is Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, South Africa, Ebrahim Patel.
This year's BRICS is under the presidency of South Africa and is organising the first face-to-face summit since 2019 in Johannesburg.
South Africa became Chair of BRICS on January 1 under the theme: "BRICS and Africa: Partnership for Mutually Accelerated Growth Sustainable Development and Inclusive Multilateralism." (ANI)
