Investors From UAE Keen To Invest In Clean Energy, Infra, Education, Financial Services, Says Piyush Goyal

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday said investors from the UAE are keen to invest in different sectors in India such as clean energy, infrastructure, education, healthcare, food processing, and financial services. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was also signed on Thursday in Abu Dhabi between India and the UAE to cooperate more closely in sustainable industrial development.

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal was in Abu Dhabi for the 11th meeting of the India-UAE High-Level Task Force on Investments.

Goyal told reporters that the airline sector holds a lot of promise for the UAE investors in India as New Delhi is giving a lot of thrust to the travel and tourism sectors.

The minister, who is the co-chair of the Joint Task Force, said, “With the conclusion of another fruitful meeting of this Joint Task Force, a lot of ground was covered. Existing collaborations were reviewed and strengthened, and new opportunities for partnerships were explored. Government of India reiterates the importance of food security in the UAE and extends its full support for the same.”

Goyal also said the progress of the food corridor project gained great significance, which received more clarity. The partnership agreement between NPCI and CBUAE for the development of a National Card scheme for the UAE, modelled on India’s RuPay card, is another milestone in our economic engagement. The India-UAE partnership will go a long way and would be exemplary for the world.

The Joint Task Force was established in 2013 to promote trade, investment and economic ties between India and the UAE.

NPCI International Payments Ltd, the international arm of the National Payment Corporation of India, on Thursday signed an agreement with Al Etihad Payments of UAE to provide real-time and cost-effective cross-border remittances for the users of both countries. According to the agreement, it will be as seamless as a domestic transaction, using a beneficiary identifier (mobile number VPA).

“Investors are very very keen to invest in infra projects, education projects, healthcare and are looking at food and food processing in a very big way,” the minister said, adding that the UAE companies are also showing a lot of interest in financial services.

“I believe that in the days ahead, we will see significant flow of investments both in public markets and in the manufacturing and services sector,” he said.

Pharma, roads and highways, ports, other infra activities, clean energy, green hydrogen, solar and wind energy sectors are likely to see investments, the minister said. Investments towards innovation and upstream and downstream projects in the petroleum and petroleum chemical sectors are areas of mutual interest, he added.

“I can say now that even the moon is not the limit (when it comes to investment relations),” Goyal said.

Between April 2000 and June 2023, India received $16 billion Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from the UAE, which accounts for 2 per cent of the total FDI during that period. The UAE Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs) invested over $10 billion in India during 2020-22. Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) is the principal Sovereign Wealth Fund of the UAE and one of the world’s largest.

The UAE has committed to investing $75 billion in India’s infrastructure sector over a period of time. The Joint Task Force was established in 2013 to promote trade, investment and economic ties between the UAE and India.

(With Inputs From PTI)