PIB | 06 Jun, 2022
Vice
President M. Venkaiah Naidu highlighted the strength of
India-Qatar ties and called for building an enabling environment and
forging more collaborations for mutual benefit.
Suggesting that the two
countries have a special relationship that evolved over centuries, Shri
Naidu called for further enriching the robust partnership and
diversifying the trade basket, which is currently dominated by energy
products.
Addressing
the Qatari businesspersons during the India-Qatar Business Forum in
Doha, Qatar yesterday, Shri Naidu highlighted the achievements of India
in recent years and said that “epicentre of growth has shifted from the
West to the Asia Region, and India has emerged as one of the strong
drivers of this growth”.
He stressed that the Indian government has been
improving the ease of doing business and pointed out that even during
the pandemic in 2021, eliminated more than 25 thousand compliances.
Naidu expressed happiness that India-Qatar has touched a new milestone
of US$ 15 billion in 2021-22 and noted that there has been a steady
increase in the number of registered Indian businesses in Qatar which
has crossed 15,000.
He observed that there has also been an increase in
the Foreign Direct investment from Qatar to India in the recent years.
On
this occasion, the Vice President launched the “India-Qatar Start Up
bridge” that aims to link the start-up ecosystems of the two countries.
Underlining that India has been fostering an environment of innovation,
he noted that India has emerged as the 3rd largest ecosystem for
startups globally, with over 70,000 registered Startups.
India is home
to 100 unicorns with a total valuation of over US$ 300 billion, he
added.
Marking
the occasion of the Environment Day, the Vice President noted that
India has been making sustained efforts for the protection of
environment and combating climate change.
He recalled India’s leadership
in establishing the International Solar Alliance (ISA) and increasing
the thrust on renewable energy. He invited Qatar, as India’s trusted
partner in its energy security, to be a partner in this journey for
sustainability and join the ISA.
Naidu expressed happiness that a Joint Business Council between
Business Chambers of India and Qatar has been established and that a
Joint Task Force on Investments would take its work forward.
He also
complimented Invest India and Qatar Investment Promotion Agency for
entering into a partnership of guiding and assisting businesses on both
sides to tap new and emerging opportunities.