♤ A Vision Document was relaesed during the African Development Bank Meeting at Ahmedabad in May 2017

o According to the Vision documents AAGC may be based on four pillars:

o Enhancing Capacity and Skills.

o Quality Infrastructure and Institutional Connectivity.

o Development and Cooperation Projects.

o People-to-People Partnership.

o people-to-people partnerships

o The AAGC offers a benevolent alternative to the BRI that holds significant potential for regional connectivity on a state-to-state level. Given Japan’s experience with mass projects and expertise in developing cutting edge train networks, such as the Shinkansen, there is room for cooperation. Despite prioritising less costly Chinese bids for rail development, a lowering of costs would benefit Japan as it enjoys greater trust within the region. Investing in strategic infrastructure projects such as ports, rails, and telecommunications would find receptive customers in countries seeking to minimise their dependence on individual trading partners.

o With infrastructure projects providing local employment, both India and Japan’s investments in foreign economies can garner greater regional support for their vision. Japan’s own experience with setting up hospitals shows how this form of cooperation can ensure a more permanent Japanese presence without fostering local perceptions of foreign control. Matching Japan’s high skills and capital, India’s own size and experience with economic development has challenged it to pursue key technologies - be they in pharmacology or solar energy - on a mass scale.