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Canada
and India: Strategic Partners
Remarks
by Hon. David Kilgour
Member
of Parliament for Edmonton Southeast
Westin
Hotel
Edmonton
18
March 2004
It
is a great pleasure to be here this morning with High Commissioner Shashi
Tripathi to discuss business and trade opportunities between Canada and India. Canadians
and Indians can benefit a great deal from each other in both human and
trade/investments terms. There are already over a million Canadians of Indian origin,
about 100,000 Abertans. They are
leaving an indelible mark in many spheres, as business-owners, as doctors,
lawyers, teachers, politicians and virtually every other occupation.
Modern
Phoenicians The
overall bilateral relationship is setting the stage for deeper economic ties.
Canada has become a classic trading nation.
Some say we are becoming modern Phoenicians in the sense that up to one
in three Canadian jobs and 46% of our GDP today are directly related to trade.
We just heard that 38% of Alberta’s economy are exports. Almost
87% of our merchandise exports go to our immediate southern neighbour.
As business people, you'll recognize that this is anything but a
well-diversified investment portfolio. The
U.S. will always represent our single most important relationship but it is
everyone's best interests to widen and deepen the trade relationship with India. Bollywood While
there is still much progress to be made, we have seen a steady increase in
exports, investment flowing both ways, and important joint ventures in
information technology, biotechnology and the arts.
Canadian filmmakers know that the world's largest film industry is
Bollywood, not Hollywood. Cutting edge Indian companies such as Infosys, Satyam
Computer Services and Tata Consultancy Services (T.C.S.) have invested in
Canada. We look forward to the list
of these innovative companies’ further expansion across Canada, especially
here in Alberta. Current
trade figures point to enormous potential:
India is presently the world's 11th largest economy; Canada,
the 8th. And yet, we are
only the other's 25th largest trading partners.
During a visit to India last year, I learned that we do not have enough
presence in Hyderabad, Bangalore and Chennai – three of India's most important
high tech cities. Economic
Transformation India
has undergone significant economic change in recent years – the kind that
makes it increasingly attractive to business and trade.
Over the last year alone, there has been real growth of 5-6% and it
became the fourth largest economy in the world in terms of purchasing power
parity. India is still seen as an
economy that could open further to the world.
Foreign and direct investment could push growth to double-digits. Indian
learning institutions graduate over two million students per year skilled in
English. This highly trained
workforce is also equipped to contribute to the worlds emerging industries,
which have headquarters in India and here in Canada. Canada
/ India Bridge Canada
is contributing to responsible globalization by opening our own economy, by
providing a more transparent fiscal framework with balanced budgets, and by
effectively using public funds to secure growth, and providing a highly skilled
workforce. Both
countries can serve as a bridge between east and west.
India and Canada can also view each other as gateways into neighbouring
markets. Doing
so has great advantages for both countries.
Indian companies can gain access to NAFTA, and Canadian companies can do
likewise into South and Southeast Asian markets. Challenges and problems remain, but Canada’s message about India is simple; opportunities await. I invite you to look into these opportunities and transform them into concrete business ventures. Conclusion
To
conclude, I hope my remarks have illustrated that India is a country of enormous
importance and opportunity for Canada. As we face distinctive challenges when it comes to attracting
investments from each other’s countries. Canadian business is recognizing
this; we are eager to take advantage of the business and investment
opportunities that India offers. India’s
history of individual liberty and social diversity will position it well to reap
economic benefits in an increasingly liberalised world. As Gurcharan Das’s
wrote in his book India Unbound, quote: “India
embraces democracy first and capitalism afterwards and this has made all the
difference. ... it is more likely to preserve its way of life and its
civilization of diversity, tolerance and spirituality.” India
is showing the entire world that democracy and unity in diversity, where there
is constitutional space for all in a climate of genuine pluralism, are possible
outside the industrialized nations of the West. This will be a major
contribution to the world of the 21st century; India can be a beacon for many
others to imitate. At
the end of the day this is precisely what it is about. As economic barriers
continue to fall, governments must be ready to take the steps necessary to
invigorate their economies, making them magnets for foreign investment,
improving productivity and adopting new technologies. That’s how all of us can
really improve the lot of our citizens. -30- |
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