Ng said they hosted the roundtable with Canadian and Indian businesses to hear first-hand how they can make it easier for these companies to work together and to help them succeed
Union commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal and his Canadian counterpart, Mary Ng, hosted a CEOs roundtable in Toronto on Tuesday a day after they co-chaired the sixth Canada-India ministerial dialogue on trade and investment and discussed an Early Progress Trade Agreement (EPTA). The two countries are expected to sign EPTA this year.
EPTA is an interim step towards the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement. Indian and Canadian officials held a seventh round of negotiations for EPTA in Ottawa last month.
“Partners in Growth!…Addressed the CEOs Roundtable in Toronto & invited Captains of Industry to invest in India’s resilient growth story,” Goyal tweeted.
Ng, who is Canada’s international trade minister, said they hosted the roundtable with Canadian and Indian businesses to hear first-hand how they can make it easier for these companies to work together and to help them succeed. “The success of the Canada-India relationship is rooted within the close collaboration and hard work of Indian and Canadian businesses.”
The Business Council of Canada (BCC) and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) organised the roundtable.
The two apex chambers also announced a new partnership “to connect business leaders from both countries, promote bilateral economic ties, and enhance cooperation as partners in the Indo-Pacific region.”
The two organisations called on the Indian and Canadian governments to continue to work on EPTA “with the goal of successfully concluding negotiations by the end of the year.”
FICCI president Subhrakant Panda said that he was confident that their partnership will not only bolster business-to-business ties between the two countries but also lift the trajectory of bilateral trade.
BCC president and CEO Goldy Hyder said he was cautiously optimistic about EPTA. “I would be extremely surprised if an agreement was not signed in 2023.”
Hyder added that Goyal’s visit is indicative of a will and a desire to get this done. He said Goyal and Ng were driving the process.
“We are at an inflection point and in the geopolitical environment in which we find ourselves, democracies like India and Canada need to demonstrate the capacity to make progress on something like this because capital requires confidence,” Hyder said.
Hyder said negotiators could omit roadblocks from EPTA. “Do not let perfect be the enemy of the good. If there are things that you are just not able to resolve, set them aside for the next round,” he said.
Goyal and Ng were separately due to attend the Canadian-India Business Council (C-IBC)’s reception on Wednesday.
C-IBC president and CEO Victor Thomas said the success of an EPTA is inextricably linked to Goyal and his visit to Canada gives hope that an agreement is still possible. “This is important as it moves us ever closer to the ultimate goal of a comprehensive agreement that would tremendously benefit both countries.”
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