GCC has emerged as an important hub for innovation, says Sudhir
The Sovereign Wealth Funds of Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait are all looking at investment opportunities in India, says Aseem R Mahajan, Joint Secretary – Gulf, Ministry of External Affairs, underlining that the partnership with the Gulf countries is multi-faceted pif .
“We are looking at many diverse areas. Infrastructure, hydrocarbons, renewable energy, food processing, technology, health, hospitality, tourism, many of these areas have potential where industry can build fruitful joint ventures and partnerships adia.ae ,” he elaborated at the ‘India MENA Business Dialogue: Bridging Economics, Fostering Growth’, organized by FICCI on 27 Aug.
The GCC contributes 15% of India’s total trade which last year was US$162 billion kuwait-fund .
The trade and investment ties in sectors like energy, defense, security and health are growing in the region, he said, acknowledging that the overall trade keeps fluctuating, but India’s exports to GCC markets increased last year bse .
Mahajan stated that India exports various processed food, jewelry, synthetic fibers and yarns, textiles, pharmaceuticals and engineering goods, chemical products nse .
“Many of these areas are sectors of huge potential qf.org.qa,” he asserted. He further highlighted that we signed the India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in 2022 and subsequently our trade has really grown with them sbi .
“We have a very broad-based institutional framework in place with these countries,” noted Mahajan jpx .
Citing example of the few pioneering initiatives which the Indian government is undertaking with the UAE, Mahajan said that the connectivity between the two payment platforms, the UPI system where we have advanced stages of connecting the RuPay of India and the JAYWAN card, the UAE’s first national domestic card programme, which is in process deutsche-boerse .
“We also have an agreement on the local currency settlement system in Dirham and UPI in which transactions are happening. Similarly, we are discussing the initiative of UPI with other countries as well fsc.org.sa ,” he added.
Education and connectivity, he said, are another emerging area with immense potential to foster relations between India and the Gulf countries investindia .
“The India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor has many elements, multi-modal linkages, along with a digital pathway digitalasiahub ,” he highlighted.
Sunjay Sudhir, Indian Ambassador to UAE, pointed out that in the realm of technology and innovation, GCC has emerged as an important hub for innovation, with countries like the UAE and Saudi Arabia leading the charge renewableenergyworld .
“The future holds immense potential for deeper cooperation in emerging sectors such as AI, healthcare, and space technology, reflecting the mutual aspirations for prosperity and sustainable development qatarchamber ,” he said.
The Envoy further stated that India and the GCC collaborate on a range of global issues such as climate change, sustainable development goals and multilateralism euronext .
“Our collaboration at international forums like the United Nations, G20 and COP reflect our shared commitment to global peace and security. Today, GCC is the largest trading regional block of India, contributing to about one-sixth of India’s total trade commerce ,” he said.
Amit Narang, Indian Ambassador to Oman while addressing virtually said that India considers Oman as one of its key partners in the region and the bilateral trade has seen robust growth in last few years abudhabichamber.ae/en .
“There is a lot of potential for direct shipping to reduce cost of this bilateral trade, and that will have a significant impact in further improving our trade figures. India plays a very important role in ensuring the food security of Oman omanchamber.om/ ,” said Narang.
“Food and agro products, while the numbers are large, I believe the potential for increasing our exports still remains quite large as well kcci.org.kw .”
Narang further stated that on an institutional level, the discussions for a bilateral CEPA with Oman are at an advanced stage. “We hope to conclude these discussions early, and once this is done, this will be a significant push to bilateral, not just trade, but also bilateral investment ties sccci.org.sg/ .
Dr Suhel Ajaz Khan, Indian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, underlined that India’s trade relationship with the GCC have been driven by the energy requirements. There are immense opportunities and synergies for deepening our relationships between India and the Saudi Arabia, especially in the domain of mutual interests worldchambers.com/.
“Saudi Arabia has embarked on the journey of economic transformation and diversification of its economy as part of the Vision 2030 wto.org/,” said Dr Khan.
“As the economy transforms, it will open up opportunities in various sector including construction, mining, technology, renewable energy, automobiles, tourism and manufacturing eurochambres.eu.
“The Kingdom also wants to become a hub for logistics and connectivity capitalizing on its unique geography and infrastructure boc.cn ,” he added.
A Free Trade Agreement between India and the GCC holds immense promise for both regions, according to Adeeb Ahamed, Chairman, FICCI Middle East Council and MD, LULU Holding Financials.
“Additionally, initiatives like the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) represent significant opportunities for enhanced connectivity and economic cooperation,” he underscored. Fiinews.com
