Our Bureau
New Delhi
India and the African Union have agreed to postpone the Fourth India–Africa Forum Summit, which was scheduled to take place in New Delhi from May 28 to 31, 2026, after consultations about an evolving public-health situation linked to an Ebola outbreak in parts of Africa. The decision was announced jointly following talks between the Government of India, the Chairperson of the African Union and the African Union Commission, which concluded it would be “advisable to convene the Fourth India–Africa Forum Summit at a later date”; no new dates have been fixed yet.
Officials said the postponement aims to ensure full participation by leaders and delegations while both sides continue cooperation on public-health preparedness and on Africa CDC-led efforts to contain the outbreak. India has also issued health advisories and been in regular contact with African health authorities as the situation develops, according to government statements.
The summit was expected to bring together heads of state, ministers and business delegations from across Africa and India for a series of plenaries and side meetings on trade, development and health cooperation, but organisers said those events will be rescheduled and finalised through mutual consultations and communicated in due course. The Ministry of External Affairs and African Union representatives emphasised that the postponement was taken as a precautionary public-health measure rather than a diplomatic breakdown.
Diplomats noted that deferring the summit will allow both sides to better coordinate support for outbreak response and vaccine and treatment efforts on the continent, while preserving the summit’s goal of deepening India–Africa strategic and economic ties. Both sides said they remain committed to holding the summit once conditions permit and will continue high-level engagement in the interim.
