INDIAN Minister for Commerce and Industry Anand Sharma called upon business leaders of India and Egypt to work on building a comprehensive economic partnership between the two nations. Sharma last week made his first official visit to Cairo at the invitation of Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry Rachid Mohamed Rachid, to participate in an informal African ministerial World Trade Organisation (WTO) session on "Consolidating the Development Dimension". After arrival Minister Sharma held a meeting with Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif in which both leaders discussed broad bilateral issues as well as global issues of mutual concern. After the WTO session, Sharma met with Rachid to discuss ways to boost economic and commercial relations between the two countries. Rachid stated that bilateral trade between India and Egypt is in continuous growth, hitting the $3 billion mark for the first time in 2007-2008. India has invested significantly in Egypt, in diverse fields such as petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals and automobiles. "India and Egypt have links documented by history and enjoy close and friendly relations," said Sharma. He underlined that both countries will witness impressive GDP growth as they largely weathered the global financial crisis. At the end of the meeting the two ministers signed a joint action plan for cooperation between the Egyptian Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Indian Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises. Such enterprises play an important role in both economies, providing work opportunities for millions of people and working as a vital entrepreneurial training ground for small businesses. A joint committee will soon be formed to oversee implementation of the joint action plan.
