The sixth edition of the Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors meet concluded here on Saturday with Chief Minister Narendra Modi saying the participation of delegates from 121 countries at the summit was not just about the branding of Gujarat as an ideal investment destination but also a message to the world about India’s worth.
“It is a moment to be proud of, for the entire country that as many as 121 countries have become the ambassadors of Gujarat and of the country,” Mr. Modi said at the valedictory event.
Mr. Modi claimed the summit had proven that any country, even with limited resources, had the potential to grow.
Unlike the previous Vibrant Gujarat summits, the State government made no claims regarding the worth of investments committed but said investment intentions for 17,719 projects were signed. Of these, 12,886 projects are in the small and medium enterprises, which would generate over three lakh jobs in the State.
The Chief Minister reiterated that in 2011, the SME sector in the State grew by a whopping 85 per cent as against 19 per cent across India. He said Gujarat generated 72 per cent of all employment in the country.
The government claimed that as many as 16 lakh people visited the various seminars, theme events and the global trade show at the summit. A whopping 58,000 delegates, besides over 2,100 foreign dignitaries, participated in the event.
Mr. Modi said the biennial summit would be held next on January 11, 2015, and that the State government would organise a similar event for the agricultural sector — ‘Gujarat International Agri-tech Summit’ — next year, which would be held every two years.