Triangular co-operation with India : Working with civil society organisations

India is home to a dynamic and vibrant community of civil society organisations (CSOs). Indian CSOs are often innovating to bridge development gaps and cater to the needs of marginalised and vulnerable groups. Historically, India is a pioneer of triangular co‑operation with first projects dating back to India’s independence in 1947. Over the past decade, triangular co-operation has gathered momentum at the global level and India has been a champion of this. A specific Indian model of triangular co-operation is emerging through which India and its partners aim to leverage domestic development innovations and the strengths of India’s diverse landscape of civil society organisations by scaling up bilateral co-operation and partnerships via triangular initiatives. Especially in African and neighbouring Asian countries there is a high demand to learn from Indian innovations and expertise, as they are considered to be easier to adapt to the local contexts. This paper provides insights into different ways of engaging in triangular co‑operation with India and sets out opportunities as well as challenges in enhancing triangular co-operation in the future with a broad range of CSO and government partners.