The Business Council welcomes the release of A Roadmap for Australia's Economic Engagement with India which outlines the strategic priorities in the relationship that will boost jobs, trade and investment with one of the fastest growing regions in the world.
Business Council Chief Executive Bran Black said the Roadmap provided a clear outline for expanding the two-way trading relationship, which is already seeing double-digit growth, through the Economic Cooperation Trade Agreement (ECTA) which was signed in May 2022.
Mr Black said the Roadmap reinforces the enormous gains to be made by Australia in key sectors including clean energy, education and skills, agribusiness, technology, and tourism.
"India's annual economic growth rate is around 6.4 per cent and this Roadmap highlights the enormous potential that greater two-way investment can bring, particularly in sectors such as energy, education and technology," Mr Black said.
"Since the ECTA was signed in May 2022, two-way trade with India has grown 18 per cent - that is a figure we should be growing even more given how important trade is to jobs in Australia and our economic prosperity."
The document identifies seven broad actions to elevate the relationship including:
- Growing and diversifying the economic relationship
- Accelerating efforts on energy and critical minerals
- Unlocking the potential of agriculture including through technology
- Supporting education and skills providers, particularly universities in India
The BCA is the secretariat of the Australia-India CEO Forum, which the Roadmap outlines as an essential part of growing the trade dialogue through corporate leadership and accelerating commercial engagement to drive investment between both nations.
The CEO Forum provided significant input into the Roadmap through working groups with Indian and Australian CEOs, while the BCA hosted a number of forums in conjunction with DFAT to inform the strategy's development.
Mr Black noted the BCA also strongly supports the Australian Government in its efforts to conclude negotiations on the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA).
"The BCA is pleased to act as the Australian secretariate for the CEO Forum, which provides a collective voice for Australian and Indian CEOs to drive commercial outcomes and greater investment," Mr Black said.
"With one-in-four Australian jobs relying on trade, agreements like CECA are critical in making sure we can grow exports - achieving this with India needs to continue to be a priority in the next Parliament."
