India opens its first Mahatma Gandhi Convention Centre in Niger

India inaugurated its first Mahatma Gandhi Convention Centre in the West African state of Niger as part of its outreach to the continent on Tuesday. The Centre was inaugurated by External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar who is currently on a visit to Niger and President of Niger Mahamadou Issoufou. The Centre honours the memory of Mahatma Gandhi whose 150th birth anniversary was observed in 2019.

This is the first-ever visit by an Indian Foreign Minister to the West African country. Taking to the microblogging site EAM S Jaishankar said that India is proud to partner with Niger in building a convention centre in order to support its diplomatic activities. The Centre is the first centre to be established in Africa by India under grant assistance. It is likely to host some meetings associated with the forthcoming African Union summit. 

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Memorandum signed

Earlier in September 2018, India and Niger announced their partnership for the establishment of the Mahatma Gandhi International Convention Centre in Niamey, Niger.  A Memorandum of Understanding for implementation of Mahatma Gandhi International Convention Centre (MGICC) with Government of India’s Grant Assistance was signed between the two countries.

India and Niger enjoy close relations. The bilateral relations have expanded significantly since the opening of the Indian Resident Diplomatic Mission in Niamey in 2009. India has provided lines of Credit worth USD 96.54 million for projects in transport; electrification, solar energy and potable drinking water. India’s grant assistance for MGICC will further contribute towards enhancing of bilateral ties.

''The Convention Centre, which would be a spacious, modern and eco-friendly facility, is being established in the context of the African Union (AU) Summit that Niger is to host in 2019 and which would witness high-level and wide-ranging participation from the AU Member States." the MEA had said in a statement last year.

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