The 2nd Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) were held between India and Ivory Coast in New Delhi on Thursday, with both sides reviewing the entire gamut of bilateral relations, the Ministry of External Affairs said.

“Both sides reviewed the entire gamut of bilateral relations covering political exchanges, trade and investments, development partnerships, capacity building, culture and people-to-people linkages, consular matters, and defence and security cooperation. Both sides expressed the potential for cooperation in the agricultural sector and in the film and television sector,” the MEA said in a press release.

The consultations were co-chaired by the Additional Secretary (Central & West Africa), Ministry of External Affairs, Sevala Naik Mude from the Indian side and Filbert Kouassi Gleglaud, Director General of Bilateral Relations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Integration and the Diaspora from Cote d’Ivoire.

The two sides also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest and agreed to enhance their cooperation in the multilateral fora.

“India and Cote d’Ivoire share long-standing ties of friendship and collaboration. The bilateral trade between India and Cote d’Ivoire has grown steadily during the last three years and it reached USD 1,552.97 million during 2022-23, from USD 1,197.4 million in 2021-22. India has extended lines of credit worth USD 207.80 million to Cote d’Ivoire for projects in the sectors of agriculture, road transport, IT and biotechnology, power etc,” the release added.

Both sides agreed to continue engagements, including through institutional mechanisms.

The next round of FOC will be held in Abidjan at a mutually convenient date.