The US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) hosted an industry-wide interaction with the Honorable Finance Minister, Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman in Washington DC on April 11, 2023. The roundtable featured captains of the industry representing over sixty companies across an eclectic mix of sectors from financial services firms to energy companies to healthcare to food and beverage to the technology sector.
The business roundtable underpinned the investor appetite for the Indian market and the optimism and growth that the world’s 5th largest economy is showing, as New Delhi gets set to host the G20 later this year. The Finance Minister underlined key themes pertaining to digitization and reforms around the Production Linked Incentives (PLI) aimed at rejigging India’s manufacturing potential, as she touched on the vision for the Indian economy, to create technology and knowledge-driven growth by leveraging digital public Infrastructure. In his opening remarks, Mr. Subhrakant Panda, President of FICCI, emphasized the role of the Indian government in creating an enabling environment for the growth of businesses. He said, “India offers a unique opportunity for global investors today, not merely due to higher growth but also owing to the size of the economy, demographics, and a stable & supportive policy environment.” Minister Sitharaman expounded on the transparency of the Indian economy as this year’s budget set the vision for India becoming a fully developed economy in the next 25 years or Amrit Kaal.
USISPF President and CEO, Mukesh Aghi said, “As the Spring Meetings continue in Washington, the IMF has touched on how India remains a bright growth spot as other major economies suffer cyclical and global headwinds. I commend Minister Sitharaman and the Finance Ministry, who through the most recent budget and through recent reforms have sought to keep India globally competitive and ahead of the curve. It’s an important year for India with the G20 later this year, and Minister Sitharaman has highlighted the key priorities in digitization and climate finance, as the Global North and Global South countries work towards solutions to pressing problems.” Speaking after the event, USISPF COO Gaurav Verma, who moderated the discussion added: “It was a well-rounded interaction, and a positive one, where we had investors from Canada, from the US, multinational companies from a wide array of sectors, who had good substantive discussions with the Finance Ministers on policies that have worked well and where the private sector can work together with the Ministry to enhance India’s competitive landscape and improve the ease of doing business environment.”