India to co-host World Hindi Conference in Fiji

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka will inaugurate the 12th World Hindi Conference in Nadi in Fiji on February 15.

Jaishankar’s visit to Fiji will be the first by an Indian leader since a new coalition government was formed in the South Pacific Island nation last year in December.

During the visit, EAM S Jaishankar will call on Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka and other leaders of the country, Secretary (West) Saurabh Kumar said during a press conference on Saturday.

The event will also see the presence of Union Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan and Minister of State for the Ministry of Home Affairs Ajay Kumar Mishra.

The conference will be held in Nadi from February 15 to 17 and is expected to draw representatives from 50 countries, the MEA official said.

A delegation of 270 members from India will be attending the event, the MEA official maintained.

According to Saurabh Kumar, the choice to conduct the event in Fiji was made during the World Hindi Conference in Mauritius last year.

The MEA Secretary stated that Prime Minister Modi constantly speaks Hindi and has delivered several addresses in the language in India as well as overseas, increasing the language's importance and inspiring more people to adopt it.

Saurabh Kumar further said that the theme for the event is “Hindi: Traditional Knowledge to Artificial Intelligence.”

“On the one hand, we honour our traditional knowledge while, on the other, demonstrating how Hindi has been effective in advancing with technology,” the MEA Secretary said.