• India expects Africa to remain a key destination for its rice shipments.

• Exporters project record Indian rice volumes in the 2025/2026 season.

• India exported about 9 million tons of rice to Africa in 2024, worth $4.5 billion.

India’s rice industry expects the African continent to remain a preferred export market, according to remarks shared with analysis firm Platts by Mukesh Jain, president of the Chhattisgarh Rice Exporters Association.

While Nigeria aims to curb imports under its self-sufficiency program and Senegal recently suspended purchases for one month to clear local stocks, Mr. Jain says these developments will not weaken India’s growth prospects in Africa.

Africa will remain a stable market for India, he said, noting that countries such as Nigeria may reduce imports as they work toward self-sufficiency, but that transition is expected to unfold gradually over five to ten years.

His comments come as India anticipates record rice output for the 2025/2026 season. Under ambitious projections from the Indian Rice Exporters Federation (IREF), the world’s most populous country could export up to 30 million tons of rice, the highest level on record.

To reach that target, authorities plan to increase shipments to Africa at a time when Indonesia and the Philippines have suspended their own imports. According to TradeMap data, India exported around 9 million tons of rice to Africa in 2024, representing nearly half of its global exports and valued at about $4.5 billion.

Espoir Olodo