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Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)
The Mantosh Sondhi Centre
23, Institutional Area
Lodhi Road,
New Delhi 110 003
INDIA
Phone: +91-11-24617251
Fax: + 91-11-24601298
renuka.singh@ciionline.org
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Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce
& Industry (FICCI)
Federation House
Tansen Marg
New Delhi 110001
INDIA
Phone: +91-11-23738760-70
Fax: +91-11-23721504
sushma.nair@ficci.com
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Portuguese Industrial Association - Business
Confederation
Internationalisation Directorate
Praça das Indústrias
Apartado 3200
EC Junqueira
1301-965 Lisboa
PORTUGAL
Phone: +351 21 360 11 22
Fax: +351 21 364 67 86
internacionalprojectos@aip.pt |
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The 8th India-EU Business Summit:
Technological Innovations for Sustainable Development
28-29 November 2007
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The 8th EU-India Business Summit 2007
was held in New-Delhi, India, in the framework of the
Portuguese Presidency of the European Union. This Business
Summit was organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry
(CII) and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce
and Industry (FICCI), in cooperation with Portuguese Industrial
Association - Business Confederation (AIP-CE), Confederation
of Portuguese Industries (CIP) and BUSINESSEUROPE, with
the high patronage of the EU Portuguese Presidency, the
European Commission, the Department of Industrial Policy
& Promotion, Ministry of Commerce & Industry and
the Indian Government.
The Business Summit brought together Indian and European
business leaders and politicians, under the theme "Technological
Innovations for Sustainable Development", and
focused in issues such as:
- facilitating and implementing policies
for growth
- boosting trade and investment
- analysis of centres of competencies &
leverage them for mutual benefit
- replication of significant success stories
- regulatory reforms to enhance business
climate
This event constituted also an opportunity to debate the
Free Trade Agreement negotiations during the CEO's
round table and explore, in parallel workshops, the following
issues:
- Business opportunities: services and
high technologies
- Public-Private Partnerships: a way for economic
growth
- Energy Efficiency and Climate Change;
- Infrastructures and logistics |
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Background |
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EU-India trade has grown impressively
over the past few years, from € 4.4 billion in 1980
to over €46 billion in 2006. It is metamorphosing
rapidly and has become a global player of repute. She
is attracting growing interest and attention as a leader
and increasingly engaging with other players on its own
terms.
India's ties with the EU, in particular, have developed
exponentially in scope and intensity in the recent years.
In the year 2000, the EU-India Partnership took a quantum
leap with the decision to hold regular annual Summits.
The summits have helped to understand the internalization
processes and the dynamics of sector specific wants and
needs of both the EU and India. The relationship has now
outgrown its originally conceived framework and it is
apparent that in the competitive arena today both see
the need to reach out to each other through better market
access, continued economic reforms and by expanding the
one to one connectivity.
Following the recommendation, endorsed during the EU-India
Summit held in October 2006, for the establishment of
a broad-based trade agreement, the negotiations for the
EU-India free trade Agreement were launched in the 28th
June 2007.
The 8th India-EU Business Summit this time
round focused on issues and reforms to take a fresh look
at opening up innovative and new business opportunities
between the two continents and constituted an opportunity
to debate the FTA, which is expected to cover not only
trade in goods and services, but also investment. Focusing
on economic activities of mutual interest, the Agreement
should include progress made on areas that mostly affect
the present bilateral relations, namely:
- need for full reciprocity in the negotiations
on market access;
- balanced agreement with regard to sensitive
products, textiles in particular;
- customs tariffs and non-tariff barriers;
- investment;
- public procurement;
- intellectual property rights.
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