Top NRI business leaders hail signing of Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between India and UAE

Union Minister of Commerce & Industry Piyush Goyal signed the CEPA with the UAE delegation led by Minister of Economy, Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri & Minister of State for Foreign Trade Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi. (PC-ANI)

Leading NRI businessmen on Friday hailed the signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between India and the UAE, saying the landmark deal will take the economic and commercial engagements to the next level and bring both sides on a win-win position.

CEPA, a comprehensive path-breaking trade agreement between India and the UAE, was signed during a virtual summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al Nahyan on Friday. The agreement was signed and exchanged by Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and UAE Minister of Economy Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri.

The CEPA is likely to boost trade between India and the UAE from USD 60 billion to $100 billion in the next five years, Indian Ambassador to the UAE Sunjay Sudhir said. Several businesses in the UAE praised the two governments for signing the CPEA which many new avenues of collaboration will open, and this will benefit businesses from both countries.

Yusuffali MA, Chairman of Lulu Group and Vice-Chairman of Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce hailed the signing of the CEPA as a "truly a landmark and very decisive moment in the long-standing Indo-UAE trade relations". The UAE and India are each other's key trade partners with robust trade and investments in various sectors in both countries. No doubt with the signing of the CEPA, many new avenues of collaborations will open, and this will benefit businesses from both countries and beyond as the UAE is a key gateway to the Middle East and Africa," Yusuffali said.

"As a UAE-based business group with sizeable presence in India, especially in the retail and food processing sectors, we are hoping that our imports from India will see new levels of growth which will further strengthen the food security of UAE," he said.

Rizwan Adatia, the Chairman of Vision Exports UAE, Cogef group and RAF Global, said that CEPA is the first step towards a new era with India completing 75 years of independence and UAE's 50 years of foundation.

The India-UAE agreement is of strategic significance for both partners. It is a win-win for both India and Emirates, he said, adding that ease of trade, connecting small businesses, start-ups, renewable and tech collaboration would be among positive outcomes.

Dr Sunil Manjarekar, President of GMBF Global, Dubai, said CEPA agreement will take India-UAE economic and commercial engagement to the next level.

It's a game-changer in mutual benefits for both the countries, he said. Manjerakar said that Maharashtra will get the maximum benefit from CEPA and that inclusion of areas like trade, investment, goods and services will add value for the economy.

Shakir Kantawala, Co-founder & Managing Partner of the WingsWay Training Institute, said he primarily sees a surge in bilateral investments which is important for both nations. The leadership teams in both UAE and India have always been progressive visionaries. Our economic ties have consistently been enhanced over the years. It's time to upscale the commercial relationship and economic bonding, Kantawala said.

Rashmi Jain, Partner at JRB Chartered Accountants, said the UAE is India's 3rd largest trade partner with nearly $60 billion of bilateral trade. With CEPA, this bilateral trade in goods is expected to increase to USD 100 bn within 5 years of the signed agreement. Similarly, bilateral investments are also expected to see significant enhancements, said Jain.

She said the CEPA pact will significantly boost jobs and investments in both countries. Industries that comprise most of the trade are petroleum products, precious metals, textiles, engineering and machinery products, chemicals, woods and wood products, etc, she said.

The Ministry of External Affairs said the UAE is India's third-largest trade partner, and bilateral trade and investment ties are expected to see significant enhancements.