SHARJAH, 8 January 2007 — United Arab Emirates Economy Minister Sheikha Lubna Al-Qassimi yesterday underscored the strong trade relations between the Arab world and India.
Opening the sixth Indo-Arab Conference and Exhibition at the Expo Center here, the minister said “India is considered an important trade partner of the Arab world as its annual trade with the GCC alone exceeds $15 billion, which represents 15 percent of India’s total trade by volume.”
The three-day exhibition organized by ASSOCHAM and Sharjah Chamber of Commerce & Industry aims to further strengthen India-Arab trade and economic links in general and India-UAE ties in particular. The event has the support of the Ministry of Commerce & Industry of India.
Sheikha Lubna called for greater India-Arab cooperation in various sectors.
“We jointly have an opportunity to go beyond the links that now exist and move toward an economic bloc uniting the two regions. The Arab world can look to India for expertise in areas such as information technology and healthcare. India, in turn can look to us for investment,” she explained.
The conference offers Indian companies to effectively reach out to buyers in the GCC countries and the entire Arab region at large. “It showcases the best of everything India has to offer to the Arab investors and those seeking strategic business partnerships in trade and other projects. It provides a forum for exchange of information and ideas and lay the foundations for future commercial ties,” said P.C. Gupta, India’s minister of company affairs.
Gupta, with other Indian ministers from various states, along with Ahmed Mohammed Al-Midfa, chairman of Sharjah Chamber and Commerce and Industry, C.M. Bhandari, ambassador of India to the UAE, chairpersons of Arab Chambers of Commerce and Industry, trade and industry ministers of 22 Arab countries and Arab Leagues officials attended the opening.