DAR ES SALAAM: THE Deputy High Commissioner of India in Tanzania, Mr Shri Manoj Bihari Verma has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Republic of Liberia.
He is expected to take up the assignment shortly as it was announced in a statement released by the Ministry of External Affairs of India on Friday.
With over 25 years in India’s foreign service, Mr Verma brings a wealth of diplomatic experience from postings in Saudi Arabia, Russia, the United States, Sudan and Mali, along with notable contributions at the Ministry of External Affairs headquarters in New Delhi.
His background includes roles in the United Nations Division, the Pakistan-Afghanistan-Iran (PAI) Division and the Administration Division. Prior to his current posting in Dar es Salaam, he worked in the Development Partnership Division, focusing on fostering India’s collaborative initiatives abroad.
Since his arrival in Tanzania in December 2021, Mr Verma has significantly contributed in strengthening IndiTanzanian relations.
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His tenure as acting High Commissioner from January to July 2024 saw bilateral trade between the two countries reach 7.9 billion US dollars, positioning Tanzania as India’s second-largest trading partner in Africa. He also played an important role in coordinating the historic state visit of Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan to India in October 2023.
The visit marked the elevation of the bilateral relationship to a strategic partnership and included the announcement of several initiatives aimed at deepening educational, trade and development ties. One of Mr Verma’s notable achievements was coordinating the work related to the establishment of the IIT Madras campus in Zanzibar (IITMZ), the first Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) campus in Africa.
Inaugurated in November 2023 by Zanzibar President Hussein Mwinyi, IITMZ has since enrolled its second batch of students and is expected to be a transformative force in Tanzanian higher education, providing world-class engineering training and fostering a spirit of innovation across the region.
In Liberia, Mr Verma will assume the role of Ambassador at a time of promising growth in Liberia-India ties. His experience across various regions is expected to help catalyse trade, investment and cultural connections between India and Liberia, especially as both countries explore new avenues of collaboration in agriculture, health and education.
As Liberia continues to foster international partnerships, Mr Verma’s diplomatic acumen is anticipated to further strengthen mutual interests, bolstering India’s ongoing commitment to development and cooperation across Africa.
