A memorandum of understanding was signed between the Bahrain India Society (BIS) and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) during the CII Partnership Summit 2023, held in New Delhi last week.
The announcement was made during a press briefing organised by the BIS in collaboration with the Indian Embassy.
Chairman Juma thanked Indian Ambassador Piyush Srivatsava to Bahrain and his team for the embassy’s active support that made the signing of the MoU with the CII possible.
The main objectives of the MOU are to actively promote investments and joint ventures, exchange of business delegations and cooperation to promote trade fairs and exhibitions in both countries. It also covers the exchange of information on all economic and commercial matters with regards to Bahrain and India, including specific industrial sectors relevant to both countries.
In line with the MoU, two teams will be formed from both Bahrain and India, with 10 industrialists and business in each. The teams will focus on creating an environment for closer industrial and trading collaboration between Bahrain and India.
The 9000 member strong CII is considering to hold a CII summit in Bahrain and is planning to organize a visit for a business delegation to Bahrain in the near future. The last CII Summit was attended by 400 top government and business leaders including several Ministers from India and other countries from over 50 countries.
BIS was part of the biggest Bahraini delegation to India in the last 10 years, led by Minister of Industry and Commerce Abdulla bin Adel Fakhro. It included over 60 representatives from the public and private sectors.
The outcome of the visit was highlighted in the press briefing by ambassador Srivatsava.
He said the meetings attended by the delegation during the India visit were productive and will lead to a number of concrete business and economic collaboration proposals.
“I am sure you must have already come across with news report of at least two concrete proposals soon after the visit,” he said
Two Indian companies, Titan’s flagship brand Tanishq in the gems and jewellery sector and Aerolam in insulation materials, are in advanced stages of finalising their investment proposals worth USD 45 million in Bahrain.
The ambassador added that the month of March has been extremely engaging and busy in terms of bilateral high level political interactions and exchange of visits.
These visits provided momentum to our bilateral cooperation in diverse sectors and is in line with the tradition of regular high level political and bilateral interaction and exchanges between our two countries, the ambassador said.
He expressed optimism in the growth of bilateral trade from $1.7billion to $2bn, as a result of the momentum of bilateral interaction in all fields and post pandemic recovery.
Second Vice President of Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) Mohammed Abdul Jabbar Al Kooheji reiterated that March was a productive month for the Bahrain-India relations. He asserted the importance of the collaboration with the CII and the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), BCCI’s MoU partner, as a facilitator for further growth in Bahrain-India business ties.
Economic Development Board (EDB) advisor Ian Lindsay said the Indian business community was very familiar with Bahrain. He added that more Indian business are expected to come to Bahrain in the coming period to start investments that will contribute to creating job opportunities for Bahrainis.
BIS Founder and Honourary member Abdul Nabi Al Shoala said the visit of the Minister of Commerce to India was a big boost to business ties between the two countries and that it demonstrated the interest and seriousness of both sides. He said the ongoing progress was the result of the efforts of key players in both countries and the support from the EDB and other official organisations.
He said the network of connections between Bahrain and India continued to grow stronger. He also highlighted the old relations between trading houses in Bahrain and businesses in India.
Source: Bahrain News Agency