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MEA laying greater thrust on economic diplomacy

New Delhi, Sep 5 (PTI) Aspiring for two-digit GDP growth, India has decided to lay greater thrust on economic diplomacy and in this regard negotiations are being expedited on Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with a number of countries and regional groupings. The government has asked its Missions abroad to vigorously pursue the economic component of relations with their host countries, an aspect which is seen as important for India's ambition of pushing its own growth. The contours of the new priority area in diplomacy were outlined by External Affairs Minister S M Krishna while addressing the Parliamentary Consultative Committee of MEA held in Mumbai on Friday, sources said. At the meeting which assumed added significance as it was held at the 26/11 target Taj Hotel, Krishna said a message had been sent out to all the 175 Indian Missions that thrust should be laid on economic diplomacy. Reflecting the priority of the External Affairs Ministry, it has since last year put aside a separate budget for economic diplomacy, which includes organising buyer-seller meets and promoting brand India overseas, sources said. This year Rs eight crore have been earmarked for this purpose, they said, adding this fund was besides the budget of the Commerce Ministry and other departments. The MEA has also created a website indiainbusiness.nic.in to serve as a single source of information with regard to Indian economy and possibilities of doing business. To pursue the goals of economic diplomacy, India is vigorously pursuing FTAs with regional blocks like 27-nation European Union, six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), 16-nation East Asia Summit and five-nation South African Customs Union (SACU). Besides, FTAs are in pipeline with countries like Australia, Japan, Australia, Russia, and Canada. FTAs have already been signed with ASEAN (in goods), South Korea, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bhutan. While seeking increased foreign investments in India, the government sees immense export potential in the IT sector, which is estimated to jump to USD 175 billion by 2020 from the current USD 70 billion. The government's hopes are buoyed by the recent UNCTAD's World Investment Prospect Survey which identified India as one of the five top investment destinations. "External prerequisites for sustained high economic growth over medium to long term include more foreign investment, and meeting our growing energy needs," Krishna told a conference of Heads of Missions here last month. PTI AKK DEP