Distinguished guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Good Evening

          I am delighted to welcome you all to the Vibrant Gujarat Roadshow. On behalf of the Embassy of India, I would like to thank you for joining us this evening.

          Today’s Roadshow has been organized to promote Vibrant Gujarat 2019 Summit. A high-level business delegation from the state of Gujarat led by MsMamtaVerma, Industries Commissioner, Govt of Gujarat, is with us. The delegation comprises representatives ofabout 20 reputed companies from a variety of sectors. I extend a warm welcome to the delegationmembers in Oman and wish them a successful visit.

          Friends, we are organizing this Roadshow on a very auspicious day. Today we commemorate the birth anniversary of the Father of Our Nation Mahatma Gandhi. Later this evening, we will be organizing an event that will be the first in a series of events and activities that we will organize over the next two years to commemorate the 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhiji was born in the state of Gujarat. His teachings are relevant for the entire world. They remain as relevant today as they were a century ago.

          India and Oman have always enjoyed close and friendly relations which go back to several millennia. Our traditionally close bilateral relations have become exceptionally strong under the wise leadership and guidance of HM Sultan Qaboos and have evolved into a strategic partnership.       
Economic and Commercial relations are an integral part of this strategic partnership. Bilateral trade is growing, having reached US$ 6.7 billion in 2017-18. Investment flows both ways are robust. India-Oman Joint ventures have reached a value of more than US$ 7.5 billion.

Yet, the potential for enhanced economic engagements is huge given the strong complementarities between our two countries. The visit of Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi to Oman, in February 2018, and his address at India-Oman Business Meet, have given a new momentum to business relations between the two countries. A comprehensive review of economic cooperation between two countries was undertaken during the visit of Commerce and Industries Minister for the 8th session of Joint Commission Meeting.

          The macroeconomic fundamentals of the Indian economy are very resilient. As the fastest growing major economy of the world,India has emerged as a preferred destination for investment amongst global investors. Supported by a large and growing domestic market and skilled workforce of 400 million youth, India’s US$ 2.4 trillion economy offers numerous lucrative business opportunities. The Government has launched a number of initiatives for rapid socio-economic transformation of India like Make-in-India, Start-up India, Digital India, National Skill Development Mission, Smart Cities and introduction of GST. India welcomes Omani funds and investors to benefit from increasingly attractive investment opportunities available in India. At the same time, the Embassy also encourages the Indian companies to invest and participate in development of various sectors in Oman including those prioritised under Tanfeedh, such as tourism, logistics, manufacturing, agriculture and minerals & mining.
         
The Indian state of Gujarat is strategically located on the west coast of India and is closest to Oman in terms of distance. Ancient trade links and people-to-people contacts between Gujarat and Oman have been well documented. Gujarat is one of the leading industrialized states of India and promises tremendous business investment opportunities. The investor-friendly policies of the Gujarat government;its state-of-the-art infrastructure; ready availability of a trained workforce; large consumer base; simple and transparent procedure for investments; and the overall ease of doing business are factors which make Gujarat an ideal destination for investments. I would, however, leave it forMrs.MamtaVerma to provide a detailed presentation.
         
Before concluding, I would like to once again thank all the distinguished guests for their presence. I wish you all a productive evening.

Thank you.