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BUSINESS EYE JANUARY 26, 2024 | The Indian Eye 36

Ministers pitch Brand India

at Davos as Govt. aims to get

$100 billion FDI a year

India is a partner that the lately expanded BRICS can count on. The country never holds

hostage its supply chains for geopolitical reasons or economic interests: Smriti Irani

OUR BUREAU
Davos
ndia is looking to attract annual foreign direct
investment (FDI) to the tune of USD 100 bil-
Ilion “in the next few years”, Union Information
Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on the
sidelines of the ongoing World Economic Forum.
“We see 6-8 per cent consistent growth rate over the
next full decade, and this is based on a very clearly
thought-out strategy. This strategy has four major
engines,” the minister told Reuters in an interview.
The four engines he listed are investment in
infrastructure, (both physical and digital), lifting
up those at the bottom pyramid of the population,
boosting manufacturing, and simplifying ease of
doing business.
Earlier, speaking at the World Economic fo-
rum Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that
trust was India’s biggest capital. “If you look at
how India has conducted its foreign policy, its eco-
nomic policy, the way it has conducted itself - the
entire world has developed a very big amount of
trust on India. That trust is what is our biggest cap-
ital. That trust gels the entire world into a very har-
monious way. For eg, we have signed an MoU with
the US, Europe, Japan on semiconductors, we are Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw meets Revathi Advaithi, CEO of Flex, in Davos on Wednesday (ANI)
working with South Korean govt & South Korean
companies. It’s like every possible company wants
to collaborate with India in one way or the other. session themed ‘BRICS in expansion’ at the ongo- he added.
So, we don’t think that it’s a battle, we think that ing World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Among other speakers at the session were
there is enough for everybody. It’s a question of “I think we are the one partner the BRICS ex- Sumant Sinha, Founder, Chairman and CEO, Re-
how much importance we give and how much tal- panded lately can count on,” Smriti Irani said. New, Jorgen Sandstrom, Head, Transforming In-
ent we put into it and how much focussed we are The BRICS grouping, initially forged in 2006 dustrial Ecosystems, World Economic Forum, and
on it...” the Minister said. by Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, Shrikant Madhav Vaidya, chairman, Indian Oil
India attracted FDI inflows of USD 33 billion has undergone an expansion in 2024. The newly Corporation.
in the first six months of the current financial year included member countries are Egypt, Ethiopia, Hardep Puri also met Vimal Kapur, Global
that started in April 2023. It recorded FDI of USD Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Iran. CEO of Honeywell. During the meeting the Min-
71 billion in the 2022-23 financial year, accord- Also, Union Minister for petroleum and nat- ister proposed fostering stronger collaborations
ing to the news report. India is a partner that the ural gas, and housing and urban affairs Hardeep between Indian companies and Honeywell to
lately expanded BRICS can count on, said Union Singh Puri said that India has a cost advantage in work for the global Sustainable Aviation Fuel op-
Minister Smriti Irani, adding that the country nev- production of green energy and electrolysers. “In portunity. They also discussed opportunities along
er holds hostage its supply chains for geopolitical the Indian energy story, the thing that stands out the green hydrogen value chain including further
reasons or economic interests. is that in the next 20 years, 25% of the increase in R and D, technology transfer, manufacturing &
“We have shown (the world) what we can do as global demand is going to come from India,” said development of electrolysers in India. They also
a part of the global supply chain, by not holding our Puri at the CII-Bain session on ‘Green Hydrogen discussed possible collaborations in areas of Biofu-
supply chain hostage for geopolitical reasons, not Opportunity in India’ at Davos 2024. els, Carbon Capture Utilization & Storage, & the
subjugating our supply chain for any other politi- “If you look at the costs, the India advantage is Global Biofuels Alliance. The Minister invited the
cal or economic interests.” the Minister for Wom- that we are able to significantly reduce the cost of CEO to participate in the India Energy Week to be
en and Child Development Smriti Irani said at a production of green solar energy and electrolyzers” held in Goa in February 2024.

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