 |
|
|
EAM's Address at the Delhi Investment Summit on Afghanistan |
|
|
Excellency, Dr. Zalmay Rassoul, Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan,
Excellencies Ministers of Commerce & Industry, Finance, Agriculture and Mines from Afghanistan,
Mr. Muthuraman, former President of the Confederation of Indian Industry
Mr. Chandrajit Banerji, Director General of the CII,
Excellencies, Captains of industry
Ladies and Gentlemen
It is indeed a great privilege and honour for me to welcome Excellency Rassoul and Ministers Ahady, Zakhilwal, Rahimi and Shahrani, other senior officials of the Government of Afghanistan and business leaders from Afghanistan, India, the region and beyond, to this important Investment Summit on Afghanistan.
I am happy to note that the Investment Summit on Afghanistan is taking place within two months after the first meeting of the Partnership Council held in Delhi. I am confident that this event will give strong impetus to the implementation of the Strategic Partnership Agreement signed during President Karzai's visit to Delhi in October 2011.
Two of the central aims of that Agreement was to support Afghanistan's emergence as a sovereign country capable of standing on its own feet with the help of similar partnerships with the international community, and to elevate our own bilateral relationship from largely one of development assistance to a full-fledged and self-sustaining partnership in which business and investment play a major role. This event is a step in that direction.
I believe this is the first ever investment meet in India for another country. The strong response of the Indian business community to the event is a sign of the closeness and solidarity we feel for a neighbour, with whom we share a long history and civilizational ties. We hope that it will be the first of many similar events by India and other countries aimed at strengthening Afghanistan and its economy through trade and investment.
By virtue of its contiguity and proximity, the countries in our region have a particularly important role to play in contributing to the security, stability and prosperity of Afghanistan and the region particularly as NATO forces draw down from a combat to a train, advise and assist role.
I especially call upon companies from the region to invest in Afghanistan for mutual benefit to create a virtuous cycle of healthy economic competition in Afghanistan.
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
The holding of a major investment meet on Afghanistan when NATO forces draw down by 2014 and terrorism continues to take a toll of lives, may at first sight appear counter-intuitive. Afghanistan may not be the easiest destination to sell to an investor. But India has ventured to do so.
This decision is based on certain fundamental insights.
Firstly, Afghanistan has suffered three decades of conflict and violence that have destroyed the structures of the State. Despite over 11 years of heightened international attention and foreign assistance, Afghanistan continues to remain a special case for development and technical assistance in years to come.
Secondly, this attention and assistance will be necessary not just for Afghanistan's good, but to our own security, that of Afghanistan, its neighbours, the region and the world at large. Let us not forget why the world returned to Afghanistan in 2001.
Thirdly, development, security and technical assistance alone is not enough. The Bonn, Chicago and upcoming Tokyo Conferences, and the Istanbul process on regional confidence-building, demonstrate the will of the international community to remain engaged in Afghanistan. But both military interventions and foreign aid are to a large extent influenced by public opinion and prevailing economic conditions. We need something more enduring, something based on self-interest rather than generosity that can move the country towards greater self-reliance and inter-dependence.
Fourthly, the military draw-down should not result in a political or security vacuum that will be filled by extremists once again. There should be something productive in its place.
Finally, we feel that foreign investment and domestic private sector development, both small and large scale, can play that role. Let the grey suits of company executives take the place of olive green or desert brown fatigues of soldiers; and CEOs, the place of Generals.
They can also play a larger stabilizing role.
Every investment is an investment in the future of a country, and an acquisition of a stake in its security and stability together with its own citizens and investors.
This will not be the security that comes from military operations but a security that comes from mutual interest and shared political commitment.
If companies invest together or in numbers, they will all benefit from the collective security of venturing together.
I call upon the investment community to act together in the interest of the collective security of Afghans and the international community.
We need to offer a narrative of opportunity to counter the anxiety of withdrawal, uncertainty, instability and foreign interference. Investments can provide that hope for employment, training and opportunity for the future. We encourage our industries to venture into Afghanistan in numbers together with Afghan partners.
India has relaxed customs duties for Afghanistan's exports as part of an initiative for Least Developed Countries in the SAARC. We invite Indian and other industry to invest in Afghanistan to access the Indian market on these advantageous terms.
We visualize Afghanistan's mineral resources, agricultural products and human resources as possible drivers of growth and regional economic development that together with the energy resources of Central Asia, Iran and the Gulf, the growing economic prowess and markets of China, Russia, Turkey and India, could knit the entire region between Turkey in the West, Russia in the north, China in the east, and the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean in the south, in a web of trade, transit and energy routes and economic cooperation.
This vision requires international support in the form of institutional finance and foreign investment. I appreciate the presence of the World Bank, the ADB and other international financial institutions at this event.
India has agreed to lead in developing the two commercial CBMs on meetings of regional 'Chambers of Commerce' and 'Commercial Opportunities' identified as priorities under the Istanbul process. I call upon CII and other Indian and regional Chambers of Commerce to identify obstacles to trade and investment in the region to step up trade promotion efforts with Afghanistan and exploit the full potential of Afghanistan as a land bridge connecting various parts of Asia and Eurasia, and particularly the vast market of South Asia.
Naturally there will be concerns of security, legal and regulatory regimes, investment protection, logistics, transport, transit, corruption, dispute resolution etc. These will have to be addressed in a spirit of partnership. This Summit may like to consider recommending a mechanism to develop a 'mutual compact' between the government and foreign investors where the interests of both Afghanistan and the international business community are protected. We look forward to this Summit coming up with recommendations for the upcoming Tokyo Conference on Afghanistan.
India will continue to pursue its vision to stabilize Afghanistan through trade and investment and regional cooperation. We invite international investors and regional countries to join in this vision for Afghanistan individually or in partnership with others.
I am confident that the Summit will attract investments into Afghanistan, and help forge partnerships between businesses in India, Afghanistan, the region, and the world.
I congratulate and thank the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) for both the vision and willingness to respond to this enlightened cause and for organizing this event at such short notice.
May I once again welcome all of you to this Investment Summit and convey my best wishes for the success of your deliberations, which would be an important confidence building measure and act as a catalyst for peace, stability and economic growth in Afghanistan and the region.
|
|
|
|
New Delhi
|
|
June 28, 2012
|
|
|
|
|
|