Kolkata, Feb 24 (FN Agency) The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Thursday invited Indian companies to cooperate in several areas including manufacturing, defence and food processing. Speaking at the Merchants’ Chamber of Commerce & Industry’s Special e-Session on “Doing Business with the United Arab Emirates”, the country’s Ambassador to India Ahmed Abdul Rahman Albanna also sought Indian investment in food processing, food security, healthcare, information technology, space and artificial intelligence.
Albanna said India has been UAE’s third-largest trading partner for the last eight consecutive years. He said the bilateral trade between the two countries has seen tremendous growth registering US$ 185 million in 1980 to US$ 45 bn in 2021. On February 18, the two countries inked a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement which will come into effect within the next one month, the envoy said. Since 2017, both countries have signed a number of different agreements and Memorandum of Understanding to boost strategic trade relations.
He said UAE has a conducive business environment and dynamically changing infrastructure, alongside its strategic location and advanced infrastructural facilities. “UAE is considered a major exporting hub for India. The Government of UAE provides Golden Visa, Green Visa, and Entrepreneur Visa to foreign citizens to live, work and study in the Middle East country with 100 percent business ownership,”he said. He said the government of UAE is promoting start-ups, fintech and Incubation centres, and has invited Indian companies to venture into these areas. Albanna identified leather, IT, Artificial Intelligence as a few sectors where UAE and West Bengal can work jointly. He further mentioned that the Government of UAE relaxed Foreign Ownership of Businesses allowing 100 percent mainland foreign ownership in UAE., which has fixed a target to set up one million new companies domestically within the next ten years. Mahesh Chandra Keyal, Chairman, Council on Foreign Trade, MCCI, appreciated the signing of CEPA between the two countries and exuded hope that it would usher in a new era in their bilateral relations.