The Indian government has approved the proposal for signing an MoU between India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on cooperation in the field of industries and advanced technologies.
Growing India-UAE economic and commercial relations contribute to the stability and strength of a rapid diversifying and deepening bilateral relationship between the two countries. India-UAE bilateral trade, valued at $180 million (Rs 1,373 crore) per annum in the 1970s, has increased to $60 billion (Rs.4.57 lakh crore) making the UAE, India’s third largest trading partner for 2019-20 after China and the US.
Moreover, the UAE is the second largest export destination of India (after the US) with an export value of $29 billion (Rs 2.21 lakh crore) for 2019-2020. The UAE is eighth largest investor in India with an estimated investment of $18 billion (Rs 1.37 lakh crore). Indian investments in the UAE are estimated at around $85 billion (Rs 6.48 lakh crore).
India and United Arab Emirates (UAE) enjoy strong bonds of friendship based on age-old cultural, religious, and economic ties between the two nations.
The two signed a bilateral “Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement” (CEPA) on February 18, 2022. This agreement has potential to increase trade between India and the UAE from $60 billion (Rs 4.57 lakh crore) to $100 billion (Rs 7.63 lakh crore) in the next five years.
The MoU envisages cooperation on a mutually beneficial basis in the following areas — strengthening the supply chain resilience of industries, renewable & energy efficiency, health and life sciences, space systems, artificial intelligence, industry 4.0 enabling technologies and standardisation, metrology, conformity assessment, accreditation and halal certification.
The MoU also aims at strengthening and developing industries in both nations through investments, technology transfer and the deployment of key technologies in industries. This is likely to generate employment across the economy.