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INDIA TRADE CENTRE IN THE GULF REGION SOON - KAMAL NATH CALLS ON THE RULER OF DUBAI
Date : 28 Mar 2006
Location : New Delhi
There will be an India Trade Centre in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) - on the borders of Sharjah and Dubai - soon to facilitate India’s exports to the Gulf region. This was agreed at an interaction between Shri Kamal Nath, Union Minister of Commerce & Industry and the Indian Business and Professional Council (IBPC) at a reception in Dubai last evening, which was attended by over 300 non-resident Indian (NRI) representatives of IBPC based in the Gulf region. The Trade Centre would be largely business-driven and show-case India’s products and capabilities in different fields, the Minister said.
Shri Kamal Nath, who is currently on an official visit to the UAE and Muscat, also had a very successful meeting with Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, this morning. During the discussions, Shri Kamal Nath conveyed to the Ruler of Dubai India’s concern over a new UAE law which stipulated that no company could have more than 34% of its personnel from any one nationality and that beyond this limit, the visa fee would be 5 times the normal fee, thereby making the company commercially unviable. Shri Kamal Nath pointed out that such a legislation impacted unfairly on India. The Ruler of Dubai appreciated the point and assured him that he would have the matter looked into in the light of India’s concern. The Minister also had a meeting with top Emarati business leaders in Dubai.
While in Abu Dhabi, Shri Kamal Nath had called on the Crown Prince of the UAE Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayid Al Nahyan.
The UAE market is important for the opportunities it provides as a major sourcing centre for important markets such as Iran, Iraq, Africa, CIS countries etc. This emergence of UAE as a re-export centre is reflected in India’s growing trade. In 2004-05, India’s exports to the UAE crossed US $ 7 billion with a 38.48% growth rate, India’s imports from the UAE also grew by an impressive 122.46% to reach US $ 4.5 billion.
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