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00:00Minister Jaishankar for having this PBD and keeping it and sustaining it. I think
00:09today the Indian diaspora is an integral part of India's architecture. You cannot
00:15speak of India without the Indian diaspora. It is two sides of the same
00:20coin. As you see the rise of India you also see the prominence of the global
00:26Indian diaspora. As India becomes more and more of a superpower, the role of the
00:33diaspora is an important part of supporting that rise of India. So the PBD
00:39I think is an important umbilical cord that links the people of India with this
00:46most dynamic global diaspora. The Indian diaspora today is the most influential,
00:52one of the largest, and one of the most respected for the role they play, not
00:58just in terms of their respective countries of residence, but also in terms
01:05of nurturing the bonds with India and the role they play globally. A number of, I
01:12always speak of a global South diaspora because I come from South Africa, a
01:18country from the global South, and those of us that were part of the indenture
01:23system, we're very proud that we have our culture and heritage embedded in the
01:29Indian subcontinent. And the PBD is a recognition of our identity, our heritage,
01:37and our roots in many senses. So having this event on a regular basis provides
01:44us a platform to link not only with India, but the international global
01:50diaspora, for us to interact with each other, get to know each other, share our
01:55challenges, and share also our experiences between this vast diaspora.
02:01And it's a unique opportunity where you can interact with people not only from
02:05India, all parts of India, at all strata of society, from government, civil
02:11society, the private sector, people from the arts, culture, sporting fraternity, it
02:17brings the whole family together. But I think equally important, it's those of us
02:23that are scattered around the globe that do not have an opportunity to interact
02:27with each other. This provides the nucleus where we can come, whether we're
02:32from Fiji, Mauritius, Trinidad, Guyana, South Africa, Malaysia, we all converge
02:38here, under the umbrella of the PBD. And I hope this platform will continue to
02:44flourish. It has a very important role to play, not only in terms of cementing ties
02:50between the Indian diaspora and India, but also contributing to the new emerging
02:57global order. The Indian diaspora is playing an active role in that, in the
03:01respective countries, and India continue to nurture that, and India is providing
03:06global leadership, especially as the voice of the global south, in this very
03:11difficult world we live in today. We need a country like India to provide that
03:16moral leadership in this difficult time. And the PBD reflects on a whole spectrum
03:24of cooperation, and I think that is very important, where you link people at
03:29different levels of positions they occupy in society, and you give
03:35recognition to all of that. And we would like to congratulate the Indian
03:39government for convening this forum, and also seeing that the diaspora is an
03:46important part of the journey towards Vixit Bharat. And I think we feel
03:52very privileged and proud to be part of this journey, and we will continue to
03:57strengthen the bonds in our interaction between ourselves in the diaspora
04:02community, and with the Indian government, and the people of India.
04:08Talking about that, since you are the Ambassador, High Commissioner in India, so how much that helps events like PBD and also the diplomacy between the two countries,
04:22specifically, if you talk about India and South Africa, how much does that, these kind of events help bind the two countries together?
04:31Well, I think it provides a very important and strategic platform. I received my PBD
04:37in recognition for promoting bilateral relations under the diplomatic tag, so
04:44that itself is testimony to how important this platform is. And I think
04:50strengthening diplomatic ties between countries, especially countries that have
04:55very significant Indian population, and today there are innumerable countries.