According to the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Shri Piyush Goyal,the proposed free trade agreement between India and United Arab Emirates (UAE) holds a huge potential for both the countries to boost trade/exports, investment, and the investors here are extremely keen to invest in the country.

Last month, India and UAE formally launched negotiations on FTA, now termed as the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) & is likely to be signed by March 2022, as both the sides have expressed a desire to reach a mutually beneficial economic deal & aims to complete the negotiations after the completion of internal legal procedures and ratification. Goyal also said that the FTA will be a win-win for both the countries, during the occasion of the Dubai Expo 2020.

Goyal, further stated that the UAE is a gateway to all of Africa and many other parts of the world. UAE also has a huge Indian diversity and also a huge market for products like textiles, gems and jewellery, leather, footwear, and food products, which are labour oriented and provide economic opportunities. He also stated that it was an outreach to the whole world to showcase a new India that is technologically driven & self-confident and also India will become an engine for growth for the whole world and is willing to engage with any competition on equal terms.

While India-UAE trade has also been impacted by the pandemic, in 2019-20, it was valued close to $60 billion with UAE being India’s third-largest trading partner, and UAE being India’s second-largest export destination after the US, with an export value of around $29 billion in the year 2019-20. UAE is also the eighth largest investor in India, having invested $11 billion between April 2000 & March 2021.

The Dubai Expo 2020, which is the largest event in the region post the pandemic and will continue for six months till March 2022. Our PM Shri Modi said India is participating with one of the largest pavilions in the Dubai Expo which will showcase investment opportunities in the country. At the Indian Pavilion in Dubai Expo 2020, the PM of India virtually addressed the event will go a long way to build deep and historical relations between India and UAE, attract investment from across the globe in sectors like health, textiles, infrastructure, and services apart from others.

The PM also said that the Centre has undertaken several reforms in the last seven years which will continue. “There is openness, opportunity and growth in India. Today, India is one of the most open countries in the world in respect of learning, perspective, and innovation. We would like to invite everyone to invest in our nation and be a part of our growth story. India has a combination of legacy and start-ups.

The India Pavilion, which was developed over an area of 4,000 sq. meters, showcased a modern, robust India which is high on technology, while also simultaneously exhibiting the beauty of Indian art, culture, and cuisine during the 183-day event. The opportunities present in India were showcased at the event.

According to the themes of the expo, visitors got a glimpse of Indian innovations and successes in the fields of space technology, robotics, electric mobility, edu-tech, e-commerce, energy, cybersecurity, healthcare, cryptocurrency and blockchain.

The lessons learnt from the pandemic have also strengthened our confidence of surpassing any challenges in the future with the help of our scientific & entrepreneurial research and development capabilities.