An India-Saudi Arabia Investment Forum 2023 meeting, coinciding with the Delhi visit of Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, on Monday saw attendance by 500 companies and identified investment collaborations across several fields.

The Forum was organized by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, and the Saudi Ministry of Investment.

It was the first formal investment symposium between the two countries that came as a follow-up to the announcement made by the Saudi Crown Prince to invest approximately $100 billion in diverse sectors of the Indian economy.

The Ministerial Session of the India-Saudi Investment Forum 2023 was co-chaired by Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution and Textiles Minister Piyush Goyal and the Minister of Investment of Saudi Arabia, Mr Khalid A Al Falih.

The discussions covered setting up of investment promotion offices, encouragement of Saudi Sovereign Wealth Funds to consider direct investments into India, in addition to the current inflow of investments through funds, and the possibility of joint projects.

Addressing the business gathering, the two Ministers discussed expanding bilateral collaboration in start-ups, digital infrastructure development, and collaboration between business and investor ecosystems of the two countries, including through closer cooperation between Investment promotion agencies of the two countries.

Some of the other key outcomes included concurrence on the fast-tracked realization of partnership opportunities identified under the Committee on Economy and Investments of the Strategic Partnership Council.

The Ministers outlined potential investment collaborations in the domains of food processing, logistics and infrastructure, healthcare, energy particularly renewable energy, skill development, space, ICT, and start-ups, particularly in the digital domain.

The Secretary, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Mr. Rajesh Kumar Singh, highlighted the importance of bilateral relationships between the two countries and emphasized mutual growth by furthering economic and cultural relations between the two countries.

The Forum witnessed detailed presentations by Invest Saudi, Invest India, Economic Cities and Special Zones Authority of Saudi Arabia, GIFT City, IFSC (International Financial Services Centre), Saudi Ministry of Culture and the Film Commission, and National Center for Privatization, Saudi Arabia, showcasing the abundant Investment Opportunities, both in India and in Saudi Arabia.

Breakout sessions were conducted with the discussions centred on potential bilateral collaboration in the domains of ICT and entrepreneurship; Chemicals and fertilizers; Energy and sustainability; Advanced manufacturing; and Food security.

Concerned businesses from both sides with expertise and interest in these sectors addressed the gathering to share their views on the potential for enhanced collaboration in these respective domains.

More than 45 Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) were earlier concluded between the two sides, in G2B and B2B formats. These MoUs are expected to further deepen the economic engagement between the two sides and will accelerate investment flows between the two sides.