Indian prime minister kicks off 4-nation African visit

India’s prime minister on Thursday kicked off a four-nation African tour on a continent where China’s presence has been strong, including countries that haven’t been visited by an Indian leader in more than three decades.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s trip is meant to raise India’s profile in energy, trade and investment. He started in Mozambique, tweeting the news of his arrival in Portuguese, the official language: “Starting my tour of Africa with a visit to Mozambique.”

India’s foreign ministry has described the four countries on the Indian Ocean as economic gateways to landlocked African states. Mozambique alone receives almost a quarter of India’s investment in Africa, according to India’s government.

He confirmed India’s commitment to buy pulses from Mozambique. India has been trying to control the prices of pulses, a staple diet for millions of its poor, which have doubled in the past 18 months because of two successive drought years.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stands next to Mozambique’s President Filipe Nyusi, right, during a guard of honor in Maputo, Mozambique, Thursday, July 7, 2016. Modi kicked off a four-nation African tour on a continent where China’s presence has been strong, including countries that haven’t been visited by an Indian leader in more than three decades. Schalk van Zuydam – AP Photo

India also hopes to sign civil aviation agreements to introduce direct flights. No Indian airline has direct connections with Africa.

South Africa, which lists India as its sixth-largest trade partner, is another key stop for Modi.

In Durban, South Africa, Modi is expected to take a brief train journey to commemorate Indian independence leader Mohandas K. Gandhi, whose experience with racism while living in South Africa as a young man shaped his resistance to segregation with nonviolent protest.