Shri Piyush Goyal addresses the Special Plenary with the Trade Ministers in the Indo-Pacific region;

Shri Goyal says India endorses the concept of working towards ensuring a transparent, trustworthy, dependable & reliable supply chain;

Minister says India’s track record should give confidence to our friends that it will be their natural & most reliable ally in years to come

Minister of Commerce & Industry, Railways, Consumer Affairs and Food & Public Distribution Shri Piyush Goyal today invited the business community in the Indo-Pacific region to actively take part in efforts for bolstering development, trade and growth in the region. Delivering the keynote address at the CII’s Special Plenary with the Trade Ministers in the Indo-Pacific region on the subject “Developing a Road Map for Shared Prosperity”, he said that India’s track record should give confidence toour friends that it will be their natural & most reliable ally in years to come..

Shri Goyal said that when we talk of shared prosperity we must remember that “Shared prosperity is impossible without shared commitment”.  He said that it is acommitment which entails sharing challenges as well as opportunities and risks as well as rewards.

He said that amidst all the suffering caused by the pandemic, there is a silver lining – agro wing spirit of brotherhood among nations to help each other. He said that this spirit of brotherhood, more than any thing else, has laid a robust foundation on which we have a chance to build promising partnerships.

Describing Indo-Pacific region as the new economic centre of gravity of the globalised world, Shri Goyal said that Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, in 2015, had articulated his vision for the Indo-Pacific in one word ‘SAGAR’ i.e Security And Growth of All in the Region. He said that it must serve as the guiding principle for all nations in this region, as a secure &stable Indo-Pacific region equals peace & prosperity forall.

Shri Goyal said that when the world looks at resilient supply chains it looks east to Indo-Pacific region. He assured that as the world moves to realign from over concentrated and risky supply chains, they can trust India to provide a multitude of investment & manufacturing opportunities. He said that India endorses the concept of working towards ensuringa transparent, trustworthy, dependable & reliable supply chain. Mentioning about the Supply Chain Resilience Initiative launched in Sept 2020 as a firm step towards building resilient supply chains, he said that other friendly countries may also be included in it.

Shri Goyal said that the abundance of trade agreements in Indo-Pacific has led to a decline in tariff rates over time. He, however, added that Non-Tariff Measures act as a major trade barrier in the region. Trade facilitation can ease cross-border movement of goods.

Mentioning about India’ strengths, Shri Goyal said that even during the initial months of the pandemic, when the country was in lockdown,no supply chain was allowed to be disrupted. It was ensured that the country met all its international service commitments in IT sector. He said that our track record should give confidence toour friends that India will be their natural & mostreliable ally in years to come.

Talking about “Aatmnirbhar Bharat” (Self Reliant India), Shri Goyal said that the country today stands at a critical juncture where it is looking to forge its own destiny and of its 130 billion people. He said that Aatmnirbhar Bharat is not about looking inward, rather it is about engaging with the world with a spirit of competitiveness and from a position of strength.

Shri Goyal said that PLI Schemes worth $26 bn covering 13 sectors have been announced to create &nurture global manufacturing champions. He invited companies from the region toutilize these incentives. He also mentioned about several measures taken resulting in the simplification and rationalization of many existing rules &regulations. The Minister said that we are about to launch a single window clearance system. The Doing Business Report, 2020acknowledges India as one of the top 10 improvers, for the 3rd time in a row, with an improvement of 67 ranks in3 years. Talking about macro-economic scenario in India. he said that the country received its highest ever Foreign Direct Investment in its history despite COVID-19,even while investments worldwide fell down.There is a new energy in our start-upseco system- 6 months into 2021, India has 15 more unicorns. India has witnessed the highest ever merchandise exports in the history of India,18% higher than the exports of Q1 of 2019-20.

Shri Goyal said that we can expand our export-import collaboration in areas of Clean Tech, Tourism,Logistics, Sustainable Agriculture, Startups, Healthcare, education & Life sciences. He invited the companies to set up their manufacturing base and expedite our integration into each other's supply chains.

On the issue of sustainability, Shri Goyal said that India is amongst the select countries regularly submitting national communications & biennial update reports to UNFCCC. It shows that India has not only met its nationally determined contribution to mitigate carbonemission, but has actually exceeded the target. India had introduced the concept of “Climate Justice & Sustainable Lifestyle” to the world and now India is showing the world how it is done.

Mr Yoon Sung Roh, Chairman of the Presidential Committee, Republic of Korea, Ms Betty C. Maina, Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Industrialisation, Trade & Enterprise Development, Republic of Kenya, Dr. Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for

Foreign Trade & Minister in charge of Talent Attraction and Retention, United Arab Emirates, Mr Faiyaz Siddiq Koya, Minister for Commerce, Trade, Tourism and Transport, Republic of Fiji, Mr Bandula Gunawardana, Minister of Trade, Republic of Sri Lanka also addressed the session.