Joint Economic Commission on the Anvil
The French Government is aiming to quickly materialise a Fast Track Agreement and hopes to hold a Joint Economic Commission between India and France at the earliest possible after the pandemic.
Stating this, Franck Riester, the French Minister for Foreign Trade and Economic Attractiveness, stressed that “Cooperation is the key to future of India – France Partnership.”
He also reiterated his government’s commitment towards the implementation of the Paris Agreement, EU-India Strategic Partnership, EU-India Science and Technology Agreement, and Innovation on Green Energy.
Riester also informed that France has set up a 100 billion Euro package plan to support its industries and international projects.
“COVID-19 pandemic is an opportunity to be bolder and daring in our partnership,” added Riester who addressed an interaction co-organized by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) and the Indo-French Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IFCCI).
There is far greater potential to be leveraged in the Indian market, added Emmanuel Lenain, Ambassador of France to India
The current market share of French companies in India is below 1%, he told the session “Business continuity between India and France during COVID-19” held 17 July 2020.
The objective of this interaction was to provide a fresh impetus to the robust India – France commercial and economic partnership in times of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The French envoy called for greater cooperation in Agro & agribusiness, energy, urban development, transportations, civil nuclear, space, defence, cyber, and digital sectors.
“We can push more in these sectors with the help of Government and ASSOCHAM,” assured Ambassador Lenain.
“Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come, and the time has come to take the idea of the India-French and the India-EU partnership to the next level,” elaborated Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal citing the famous French poet, Victor Hugo.
Mr. Piyush Goyal pointed out that the India-French trade of US$10 billion has a far greater potential to go beyond the modest projected target of US$15 billion.
Piyush invited French companies to leverage the recent reforms undertaken by the Indian Government including ‘Make in India’ programme.
Goyal also urged the French private companies to share such technologies in the railway sector that India is lacking while calling on the ASSOCHAM and IFCCI to collaborate with Invest India to explore French companies’ interest in investing in India.
The Minister assured the full assistance of his office to Indian and French companies in finding viable solutions and resolutions for expanding their business interests.
“There remains a lot of scope for enhancing cooperation in the field of trade and investment and our Chamber is actively involved in this endeavour,” said Sumeet Anand, President, Indo-French Chamber of Commerce & Industry (IFCCI) at the session.
“Bilateral trade and investment between India and France could be doubled within the next few years and that’s what businesses and institutions from both economies are looking forward to leverage,” said ASSOCHAM President Dr. Niranjan Hiranandani.
The deep engagement of industry and political leadership on both sides will help the Indo-French partnership attain greater heights, added Ranjeet Goswami, Head – Corporate Affairs, TATA Consultancy Services.
Meanwhile, Anil Chaudhry, Country President & MD, Schneider Electric India shared the experiences of his companies in France and India respectively and expressed confidence that
ASSOCHAM Secretary General Deepak Sood opined that the global leadership qualities of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron have helped India and France work towards the advancement of India-France relations to a new meaning, new dimension and new depth.
Sood assured full cooperation of ASSOCHAM to industry on both sides for creating greater synergies and stronger relations.
Indian and French companies should use the network of ASSOCHAM and IFCCI to engage and create platforms for cooperation to take Indo-French partnership to greater heights, stressed Payal Kanwar, Director General, IFCCI. #IFCCI #Assocham #France #PMO #PiyushGoyal #EmmanuelLenain #FranckRiester #trade #technology /fiinews.com
