India is expected to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the UAE soon to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the field of industries and advanced technologies.
The Indian cabinet on Wednesday approved the proposal for the MoU.
The MoU between the two countries seeks cooperation on a mutually beneficial basis in the areas of strengthening the supply chain resilience of industries, renewable and energy efficiency, health and life sciences, space systems, artificial intelligence, industry 4.0 enabling technologies and standardization, metrology, conformity assessment, accreditation and Halal certification, an official statement said.
“The MoU aims at strengthening and developing industries in both nations through investments, technology transfer and the deployment of key technologies in industries. This is likely to generate employment across the economy,” the Indian government stated.
India said the implementation of the MoU could lead to increase in research and innovation in all areas of mutual cooperation, which may help these sectors grow, increase domestic production, enhance exports and decrease reliance on imports.
The proposed MoU is part of the on-going efforts by the two countries to further strengthen bilateral economic and trade relations. The India-UAE bilateral trade is estimated at $60 billion.
Earlier this year, India and the UAE signed a bilateral “Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement” (CEPA), with an aim to increase the bilateral trade to $100 billion over the next five years from the current level of $60 billion.
The UAE was India’s third largest trading partner in 2019-20, after China and the US. It is also the second largest export destination of India after the US, with an export value of $29 billion in the same year.
The UAE is also the eighth largest investor in India with an estimated investment of $18 billion, while the Indian investments in the UAE are estimated at around $85 billion.
