UAE-India trade set to gain more impetus

The Partnership Summit will bring together key decision makers to review economic relations

Top government officials and key decision-makers from the UAE and India are currently meeting at the India-UAE Partnership Summit in Dubai to discuss the policy framework and guidelines required to attract investors to India. The high-level meeting follows the recent announcement of $1 billion (Dh3.67 billion) investment by Abu Dhabi Investment Authority in India.

Held under the theme of ‘Investment Implementation’ the delegates will deliberate about how important projects in India could be financed and executed with the participation of local businesses in the UAE. The development assumes importance in view of the joint statement adopted by the two sides during the visit of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, to India in January 2017. Before that the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s historic visit to the UAE in 2015 reaffirmed the close relationship between the two countries.

For the UAE, India has been one of the largest trading partners in the world. With trade links going back to several decades, the UAE is currently the 10th largest Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) source market for India. Invest India, the foreign investment promotion body of India, is aiming to attract $100 billion foreign investment in the country, of which $85 billion has already been committed by more than 600 large businesses, according to reports. The UAE significantly contributes to India’s energy security and is currently the fifth-largest supplier of crude oil to India. Going forward this partnership is expected to grow. With more than 2.5 million Indian expatriates in the UAE, the surge in relations between the two nations is a natural corollary.