The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is set to look for fresh investment opportunities in India, building on the booming trade between the two countries, which has zoomed to 67 billion dollars last year.
Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the head of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), will arrive on Monday in New Delhi on a five day visit to India, which will also take him to Mumbai and Bengaluru.
Accompanied by a large delegation, Sheikh Hamed will be hosted in New Delhi by Anand Sharma, Minister of Commerce, Industry and Textiles.
With an eye on possible tie- ups with the private sector, the visitors from the oil rich Gulf-nation will hold meetings organised in New Delhi by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), while the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has organised business meetings for the visiting delegation in Mumbai. In Bengaluru, where the Information Technology sector will be in focus, Sheikh Hamed will be hosted by the External Affairs Minister, S.M. Krishna. ADIA’s website said that the investment body, which is wholly owned by the government of Abu Dhabi has invested globally in several categories Including “quoted equities, fixed income, real estate, private equity, alternatives and infrastructure”.
Diplomatic sources said that UAE is focusing hard on India, as business opportunities dry up in the West, on account of the global economic downturn. “Both India and the UAE have shown economic resilience during the recent economic crisis and offer opportunities in the trade and investment sectors,” a press statement by the Indian embassy in Abu Dhabi said. The statement added that the UAE is among the top ten investing countries in India with an estimated investment of more than US$8 billion. Major UAE investing companies are ADIA, Taqa, Dubai Ports World, EMAAR, Etisalat, TECOM, RAK Ceramics and RAK Investment Authority.
In New Delhi, Sheikh Hamed will also meet Finance Minister, Pranab Mukherjee, Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath, Jairam Ramesh, the Rural Development Minister as well as Communication and Information Technology Minister, Kapil Sibal.
