UAE, India agree on steps to boost investment, trade

The UAE and India agreed to explore ways to facilitate two-way investments and to work “on a priority basis” to ensure speedy resumption of normal air transport operations.

The two sides agreed that the recent challenging circumstances of Covid-19 made it even more important to encourage investment and cooperation in areas of mutual interest with the purpose of stimulating economic activity.

The two sides also agreed that their civil aviation authorities should continue to work together on a priority basis, for their mutual benefit, to ensure speedy normalization of bilateral air transport operations that were suspended due to Covid-19 outbreak.

During discussions held at a virtual meeting of the India-UAE High Level Joint Task Force on Investments, both sides reiterated the importance of addressing specific perceived barriers to bilateral trade with an aim to further strengthen trade and economic ties.

An official statement said the two sides agreed to coordinate efforts and promote mutual cooperation at the highest official levels in areas of anti-dumping and to consider these issues promptly with the objective of seeking mutually beneficial solutions.

They agreed upon the need to further explore ways to facilitate investments in key Indian and UAE sectors with potential for economic growth, and to maintain their dialogue and further build on the considerable achievements of the Joint Task Force, the statement said.

The meeting was co-chaired by Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Member of the Executive Council of Abu Dhabi, and Piyush Goyal, India's Minister of Commerce and Industry. Senior officials from both the countries were also present.

The two sides discussed issues related to the development and operation of UAE-based funds to invest in India, including in the light of Sebi's Foreign Portfolio Investor Regulations 2019. The Indian side agreed to look into these issues with the objective of facilitating further direct investments of UAE-based funds into India and seeking mutually beneficial solutions in that regard.

Other key points of discussion at the meeting focused on opportunities for cooperation and potential investments in key sectors in India including the healthcare and pharmaceutical industry, mobility and logistics, food and agriculture, energy and utilities and others.

Sheikh Hamed said the past decade has witnessed a positive transformation in the economic relationship between the UAE and India. “I believe that the commitment of this Task Force over the past eight years has been central to that success. Although recent months have been difficult for us all, we have today set out an ambitious agenda for the next stage of our economic co-operation. I am convinced that we can return to significant growth in our bilateral trade and investment in the years ahead.”

Goyal said the joint task force is an integral component of India’s comprehensive strategic partnership with the UAE.

“India is on an ambitious growth path and has significant headroom in various sectors of its economy. The UAE has been a consistent investor in diverse sectors of the Indian economy and is a valuable partner in our development journey. We attach high priority to the UAE investments and have been consistently taking progressive steps to ease the path for UAE investors,” Goyal said.

The Joint Task Force was created in 2012 as a crucial forum for further deepening the already strong economic ties between the UAE and India. The mechanism has assumed greater importance as the two countries entrench the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement signed in January 2017.