Africa-Asia Engagement: An Institutional response towards resources seeking by the Indian State

This conference paper analyses how the Indian state is managing its new institutional strategy in the midst of inter-state competition for energy resources in the African continent. We base the paper on evidence from primary data, gathered from interviews with elites within the Indian state as well as within the Kenyan state. The new institutional strategy of the Indian state, particularly the new Africa-centric strategy is based on the following institutional lenses.
 
The new Energy diplomacy strategy of the Indian state
Use of state owned and national champions
The role of private firms in India’s resource seeking and the state’s intent in using private firms to seek resources and assets in specific markets
The role of the diaspora in Africa as an advantage for the state
Using Indian foreign policy as resource seeking capability for firms
Institutional support mechanisms
The market based-approach for Energy acquisition by the state
Security-based approach of the Indian state towards resource seeking
Projection of power into the Indian Ocean