External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s recent visit to three African nations hardly gathered any media interest in India. It is perhaps only to be expected in a country that devotes reams of newspapers and aeons of airtime to Bilawal Bhutto’s impending arrival for an SCO summit or better still, Hina Rabbani Khar’s Birkin bag. That’s a bit of a shame. Jaishankar’s trip to Africa demands close attention. After decades of neglect, absence of any long-term strategy or sense of direction, India is making a strong play to be counted as a big stakeholder in Africa. And it is doing so...