Hon’ble Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs of India, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman

Hon’ble Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan, Mr. Jamshid Khodjayev

Mr. Sunil Sanghai, Founder and CEO of NovaaOne Capital

Mr. Rasulov Dilshod Ozodovich, Deputy Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Uzbekistan

and senior officials on both sides

It is indeed an honour and privilege to have two Ministers present here today along with nodal Chambers of Commerce and guide our efforts towards augmenting trade and investment, tourism, technology and connectivity links in line with the larger vision set by the leadership of the two countries.

2. I have been here for little over three months and we have already received 160 companies from India including from India International Textile Machinery Exhibitions Society, Pharmaceutical Export Promotion Council and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry highlighting the tremendous interest Indian companies have evinced in Uzbekistan.  As per Uzbekistan Statistics Agency, close to 650 Indian nationals visited the country between January till July 2024 for commercial purpose.  These are all encouraging signs.  The two Ministers have already highlighted the areas which have maximum potential in Uzbekistan.  I will be very happy to have more detailed conversations with each one of you on how we can take trade and investment partnership forward.

3. Signing of Bilateral Investment Treaty by two Ministers today is a milestone in our investment ties.  As is evident on two sides, there is huge potential in logistics, power, infrastructure, healthcare, agriculture, agriculture technology, farm machinery, EPC, automotive sector, energy, textile, etc.  Our investments in Uzbekistan have also seen growth of more than 42% till July this year in relation to last year.  We have also taken note of Minister’s suggestion on doing more work on issues relating to connectivity and logistics.  There was a suggestion earlier on commencing cargo flights and of course these are issues that can be discussed between the relevant Ministries.

4. I also want to inform all of you that I had earlier led a delegation of Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry to Nukus and we had received a very encouraging response in various areas including in areas of hydrology, waste water management, seeds, renewable energy, textiles, pharmaceuticals, ayurveda, traditional medicines, medical equipment and agro-processing.  We are in touch with authorities in Karakalpakstan to take some of these proposals forward.  We are keen to mount more business delegations to other regions and seek support of Ministry of Investment, Industry and Trade in this regard.

5. Hon’ble Minister Madam, your visit to Uzbekistan imparts further momentum to India-Uzbekistan Strategic Partnership and gives assurance to the business community on the two sides.  Hon’ble Deputy Prime Minister Sir, we are also very thankful to you for excellent hospitality and arrangements and for your valuable suggestions.  I will remain in touch with you and your team for further guidance.

6. I thank Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry for their very active role, the Chambers of Commerce of Uzbekistan and all the members of the business community from India and our Uzbek friends for making this Business Forum happen.

7. India will be hosting several business events including Bharat Telecom, India Chem, India International Silk Fair, Bharat Mobility Global Expo, Bharat Tex and Indiasoft.  We have shared information with our Uzbek friends.  We would like you to attend in huge numbers.   Please contact the Commercial Wing in our Embassy in case any assistance is required.