On 9th July the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC) and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) held a Marlborough House Conversation, where they signed a Memorandum of Understanding to cement their strategic partnership. The organisations will initially focus on the key themes of skills, SMEs and sustainability which are vital for the success of all Commonwealth countries.
Those in attendance included a delegation of leading Indian industrialists led by Mr Sumit Mazumder, President of CII. Discussion focused on India’s opportunity to play a leadership role within a revitalised Commonwealth focused on trade and investment and finding ways to promote sustainable business.
Lord Marland of Odstock, Chairman of CWEIC, said “we are delighted to have the Confederation of Indian Industry as a Founding Strategic of Partner of the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council. With more than half the population of the Commonwealth, the support of the Indian private sector is a crucial vote of confidence in the continued potential of the Commonwealth. We must now work together to deliver on this potential”
HE Kamalesh Sharma, Secretary General of the Commonwealth, and Rt Hon Hugo Swire MP, Minister of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office followed Lord Marland with their remarks. HE Kamalesh Sharma welcomed the partnership, stating that it is “encouraging to see India so active within the Commonwealth”. Rt Hon Hugo Swire added “many of the current global economic challenges can be addressed through the collaboration of CWEIC and CII”.
Panellists commenting on India’s leadership within the Commonwealth were Sumit Mazumder, Rt Hon Hugo Swire MP, HE Ranjan Mathai, High Commissioner of India to the United Kingdom, and Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General of CII. Lord Marland moderated the session. They addressed the huge potential in India as the fastest growing economy in the world and agreed that the new partnership between CWEIC and CII will be mutually beneficial to India and the Commonwealth. Sumit Mazumder said “we look forward to a closer engagement with CWEIC in the days and years to come”. Chandrajit Banerjee said "CII runs many centres of excellence in India, such as food and agriculture, sustainable development, and logistics, which integrate best practices from around the world. We can translate some of those learnings into Commonwealth countries."
Panellists discussing ways to promote sustainable business within the Commonwealth were Dhruv M Sawhney, Past President of CII and Chairman & Managing Director of Triveni Turbine Ltd, Shaurya Veer Himatsingka, National Chairman of Young Indians (Yi) and Philip Bouverat, Director of JCB Ltd and a Member of the Advisory Board for the CWEIC. The session was moderated by Justin Mundy, Director of The Prince’s Charities’ International Sustainability Unit. It was agreed that there should be a policy shift in terms of how the public is educated on sustainability and alterations in long-term finance packages for sustainable infrastructure.
Manoj Ladwa, CEO of MLS Chase and member of the CWEIC Advisory Board, concluded the event: “there has always been a need for the UK and India to collaborate beyond their borders and this partnership has created a great platform for this”.
