India-Belgium Trade and Economic Engagements

–  Jestin Johny –

The bilateral relations between India and Belgium dates back to the World War I. The staunchest relations between the two countries were established in 1948 and since then there is no turning back. The countries share a typical agreement of cultural and linguistic diversity and powerful business and diplomatic ties.[i] The nature of this engagement is largely geo-economic, and it is an instrument to serve the economic as well as the geo-political interest of both the countries.

The link became a lot more spirited from 2008 onwards by the visit of the crown Prince Philippe in March 2010. Moreover, President Pranab Mukherjee visited Belgium in 2013. Recently, in November 2017 King Philippe and Queen Mathilde, visited India on the invitation by the President, as both countries were celebrating 70 years of diplomatic ties that was geared at strengthening the political and business actions between the countries.[ii]

Recent bilateral engagements between the two Prime Ministers further strengthened the relations with an optimistic outlook towards increasing trade and investment, as Belgium being India’s largest trade partner in merchandise with EU and India being the biggest export destination for Belgium outside EU.[iii]The partnership between the two countries has glimmered in sectors like information technology, biotechnology, prescription drugs and renewable energy. Furthermore, so as to encourage trade and investment the two sides are presently acting on amending the protocol that makes the double taxation avoidance agreement prodigious and modern. The bilateral engagements were conjointly graced by trade delegates from each sides, and either side is aroused to take advantage of growing trade and investment opportunities in each country with their experience.

The India-Belgium bilateral trade relations show trajectory trade figures. The key commodities of Indian exports to Belgium are iron and steel products, mineral fuels, oils, apparels, clothing accessories, organic chemicals, and fishery products. While imports from Belgium are precious stones, metals,machinery, mechanical appliances, iron and steel products,pharmaceuticals, organic chemicals, plastic and its products. India’s export to Belgium was always at snail’s pace for few years. India’s export to Belgium was US$420.08 million in 2007-08 which increased to more than double in 2015-16 and accounted for US$527.61 million. In 2016-17 there was a slight increase in exports to US$565.89 million. The statistics reveal that FDI inflows from Belgium into India amounted to US$896.09 million from April 2000 to March 2016 making Belgium as 22ndlargest investor in India.[iv]

However, the bilateral trade between India and Belgium were mostly in the field of diamonds for decades long. Both the countries realized the need to create an impetus by diversifying bilateral trade portfolio in other sectors as well. There are serious efforts closing into policy implications to trade into new and evolving areas of mutual interest. Whereas Belgium business interests lies inports, construction, banking and finance, chemicals, fertilizers and solar energy. India would really like to rifeits base to existing export basket with more venture into IT and IT-enabled merchandise.

India views Belgium as partner in its search for advanced technologies that will facilitate Asia’s third-largest economy to attain its sustainable development goals. The impetus of Prime Minister Narendra Modi would reside on his government’s key initiatives like Make in India, Digital India, and Start-up India to draw Belgian technology and investments. Whereas, diamond trade has been a powerful anchor in bilateral commerce, renewable energy, harnessing waste for energy, small wind turbines, and zero emission buildings were some of the new areas for cooperation highlighted by the Prime Minister. Both leaders stressed on deepening bilateral relations insectors such as information technology, tourism, shipping, and ports are on the list of strategic cooperation.[v]

The extension of cooperation in the field of education, the two Prime Ministers hailed the various move towards in area of linkage between industry and academic research, student and exchange of faculty between higher academic establishments of Belgium and India. Citing that 40,000 Belgian tourists visit India every year while Belgium receives about 60,000 Indian tourists every year, the two leaders applauded the e-tourist visa facility extended by India to Belgian national to endorse business. They greeted the forthcoming signature agreement between government of India and the Flanders on co-operation in the field of trade and investment. They also agreed the need to capitalize on the full potential of EU-India strategic partnership and look forward to consensus on the India-EU agreement on broad based trade and investment agreement.[vi]Welcoming the envisioned adoption of the India-EU Common Agenda on Migration and Mobility and underscoring the prominence of the growing people to people exchanges between India and Belgium, the Prime Ministers aroused efforts to ensure easier mobility of people on either side.[vii]

Finally, contemporary development of business relations between Belgium and India is quite vital. The business to business meetings need to be encouraged with focus on SME growth to create avenues for greater people to people participation. It is highly indispensable that both countries maintain strategic alliance to keep leveraging mutual geo-economic and socio-cultural engagements.

[i] See GauriKhandekar-Indian Companies in Belgium; EU-Asia Programme at Think Tank FRIDE, based in Brussels, assessed on 18/12/2017

[ii]India Belgium to Deepen Economic Ties, Page 18 The Economic Times, dated 6th December 2017, www.economictimes.com

[iii]See Embassy of India, India, Belgium and Luxembourg 70 years of Diplomatic relations, Embassy of India Brussels, accessed on 19/12/2017

[iv]Export Import Data Bank, Department of Commerce, Govt of India, accessed on 19/12/2017

[v]Revisiting India-Belgium Bilateral Relations | Diplomacy and Beyond; Diplomacybeyond.com/articles/revisting-India-belgium-bilateral-relations /, accessed on 01/01/2018

[vi]India – Belgium Joint statement; see mea.gov.in/bilateral-documents.htm?dtl/…/India Belgium;accessed on 13/02/2018.

[vii]India, Belgium for further strengthening of academic engagement; https://newkerala.com/news/fullnews=174685.html, accessed on 01/01/2018