Minister Fast Successfully Concludes Third Trade Mission to India

News Release

Advancing Canada-India trade and investments an important element in pro-trade plan to create jobs and opportunities

October 21, 2014 - Ottawa, Ontario - Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada

The Honourable Ed Fast, Minister of International Trade, the Honourable Kerry-Lynne D. Findlay, Minister of National Revenue, and Bob Dechert, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice, recently concluded a productive six-day, three-city trade mission to India to bolster Canada-India trade and investment partnerships. They were joined by representatives from 14 Canadian companies—predominately small and medium-sized enterprises—looking at new commercial opportunities in India.

While in India Minister Fast and Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird met with Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, to discuss international security and the expanding bilateral relationship between Canada and India. They highlighted Canada’s desire to build on the Canada-India relationship and the expertise of Canadian companies in the areas of energy and food security, education, innovation and infrastructure, each of which is a priority under the new Modi government.

During the visit, Minister Fast also met with several Indian ministers and government officials—including Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry and Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs; Arun Jaitley, Minister of Finance; Jitendra Singh, Minister of Science and Technology; Venkaiah Naidu, Minister of Urban Development; Sushri Uma Bharti, Minister of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation; Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas; and Parkash Singh Badal, Chief Minister of Punjab—to discuss projects and commercial opportunities of interest to both Canada and India.

Minister Fast and his delegation also met with key business leaders to discuss opportunities to increase Canadian investment and business opportunities. In Mumbai, Minister Fast met with K.K. Maheshwari of Aditya Birla Group, the largest Indian foreign investor in Canada, as well as Pawan Goenka, Executive Director and President, Automotive and Farm Equipment Sectors, at Mahindra Group, a global conglomerate with operations spanning 18 industries such as aerospace, agribusiness, automotive and energy. In Delhi, he took part in a round table discussion with Canadian and Indian entrepreneurs to promote the Canadian Technology Accelerator program.

The Minister witnessed the signing of a partnership arrangement aimed at cleaning up the Ganges River using Canadian technology and expertise, as well as an agreement involving Canadian medical company Novadaq Technologies to market innovation technologies in India. He also launched a call for proposals for joint R & D projects that will foster greater bilateral science and technology collaboration. Ongoing business cooperation strengthens commercial ties between Canada and India and leads to jobs, trade and increased opportunities for both countries.

In Chandigarh, Minister Fast visited the University of the Fraser Valley’s campus and delivered remarks on the success of Canada-India educational partnerships, which have led to groundbreaking research and innovation as well as lucrative business endeavours.

This is Minister Fast’s third trade mission to India in support of the Government of Canada’s ambitious pro-trade plan to help Canadian businesses explore new export opportunities abroad.

For more information on the Minister’s trip, visit Minister Fast Leads Trade Mission to India.

Quick Facts

Nearly 1.2 million Canadians can trace their roots to India.
Bilateral merchandise trade between Canada and India has more than doubled over the last 10 years and totalled $5.8 billion in 2013.
Canadian merchandise exports to India totalled $2.8 billion in 2013, consisting mainly of vegetables (dried peas and lentils), fertilizers, precious stones and metals, mineral fuels and oils, and paper and paperboard.
In 2013, 299 Canadian companies undertook more than $1.8 billion in business with India that was facilitated by Export Development Canada (EDC).
India is a priority market under Canada’s International Education Strategy and is the second-largest source of foreign students studying in Canada.
India is Canada’s largest trading partner in South Asia and continues to be a priority market under Canada’s Global Markets Action Plan—the blueprint for creating jobs and opportunities for Canadians through trade.

Quotes

“Our government’s priority is to create jobs and opportunities, especially when it comes to helping Canadian small and medium-sized enterprises succeed abroad. Canada and India enjoy a rich, established relationship, and we look forward to strengthening it through increased export and investment ties. This trade mission is just one way of doing that.”
- Ed Fast, Minister of International Trade

“For our first official trip to India to explore export opportunities, we were very fortunate to have been able to join Minister Fast’s trade mission. Through the various meetings held in Mumbai and Delhi, we have been able to gain a better understanding of the trading landscape, challenges and opportunities for partnerships throughout India. The trade commission staff made our meetings extremely productive and have assured us that their support will be ongoing long after we return to Canada. We know that starting to export to India will not happen overnight, but we are confident that with the government’s support and its strong relationships in the market in India, we have a strong chance of doing business here in the coming years.”
- Mike Reed, President, BC Hot House Foods Inc.

“The trade mission to India was a fabulous experience overall. It was a great way to get the inside scoop on the feel and flavour of India by meeting the local entrepreneurs and elected officials who make the country work. The positive effects of this India mission for me included higher sales revenue opportunities, visibility and goodwill and a better perspective. An additional benefit was that the mission helped us develop close business relationships. This was a great way for the participants who were looking at doing business in India for the first time to initiate the process of breaking into a new market.”
- Dilip Ghose, Director/President, Global Business, LM Technologies Canada Inc.

“As Canada’s leading international bank at the forefront of introducing Canadian businesses to the world’s markets, we were delighted to be part of Canada’s latest trade mission to India. The case for Canadian trade and investment in South Asia has never been stronger, and Canadian companies are looking to expand their reach to countries like India, seeking higher-growth opportunities and reducing exposure stemming from overreliance on Western markets. In fact, HSBC’s The World in 2050report forecasts that India will be the third-largest economy in the world by 2050.”
- Ananth Krishman, Head of Business Development - Western Canada, Global Trade & Receivables Finance, HSBC Bank Canada

“We have found the support of the Commission officers to be extremely valuable. The experience with the other participants during the trade mission helps to verify our common interest in this market. With the support of the officials, we met with a client yesterday truly interested in a solution for their situation. We are very grateful.”
- John MacDonald, President, IT Measures

“The new government and optimism it brings in India is a generational change for the country. Canadian multinational companies and small and medium-sized companies can now get a seat at the table by partnering with the open innovation and P3 [public-private partnership] model being adopted in India in the health care, agriculture, infrastructure and resources sectors.”
- Aubrey Mendonca, President, ChemRoutes Corporation

Associated Links

Contacts

Shannon Gutoskie
Press Secretary
Office of the Honourable Ed Fast
Minister of International Trade
613-992-7332

Media Relations Office
Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada
343-203-7700
media@international.gc.ca
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Backgrounder - Private-Sector Participants in October 2014 Trade Mission to India

Affluence Capital Corporation
BC Hot House Foods Inc.
Best Theratronics Ltd.
ChemRoutes Corporation
Cloverdale Fuel
DataWind Inc.
Deloitte LLP
Environmental Waste International Inc.
HSBC Bank Canada
IT Measures Ltd.
Kitsault Energy
LM Technologies Canada Inc.
Nrich Canada
Prudential Consulting

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Minister Fast Successfully Concludes Third Trade Mission to India

News Release

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