THIRTY Indian businesses are expected to come to Cebu in November for a two-day business roadshow that aims to grow trade relations between India and Cebu in seven key priority areas.
The upcoming Cebu leg of the India Business Roadshow slated on Nov. 14 and 15, 2023 will focus on agriculture, energy, infrastructure, innovative technology solutions, information technology-business process management, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, and tourism.
These are areas that hold potential for partnership based on complementary strengths and comparative advantages, according to Sadie Alam, economics and commerce counselor from the Embassy of India.
“We want to explore opportunities for trade and investments as well as generate awareness and apprise local government, authorities, businesses, and other stakeholders in the Philippines about the successes of Indian businesses,” Alam said.
India and the Philippines registered a trade volume in surplus of US$3 billion last year. Alam said both countries are young, fast, and growing democratic economies with immense potential for mutually beneficial collaboration.
“This roadshow will open another chapter of cooperation for both India and the Philippines, particularly Cebu,” he said.
The upcoming business roadshow is in collaboration with the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI).
Benny Que, vice president for business development at CCCI, said this collaboration bodes well for Cebu’s business community, especially for those seeking new markets to tap and products to sell.
“We are looking forward to this roadshow because India is a big market to explore,” he said.
India currently has the world’s fifth largest economy at $3.469 trillion after Germany with $4.031 trillion; Japan ($4.301 trillion); China ($18.321 trillion), and the United States ($25.035 trillion). India’s economy boasts of diversity and swift growth, fueled by key sectors such as information technology, services, agriculture, and manufacturing.
Besides meeting CCCI’s leaders, Alam together with Dileep Toward, president of India Business Forum Association Philippines Inc., also paid a courtesy call on Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama.
Alam said the embassy is willing to help the City Government in the sourcing of cheaper medicines from India for the Cebu City Medical Center.
They are also open to exploring the idea of forging sister-city agreements, noting that there are also cities in India like Cebu City that are facing challenges in urban planning and the like.
Indian investment in the Philippines is mainly in the areas of textiles, garments, information technology, steel, airports, chemicals, automobiles, and pharmaceuticals.
Some of the major Indian investments in Philippines are the Aditya Birla Group in textiles and chemicals (Indo Phil Group); Ispat Group in steel; GMR Group, Tata Motors and Mahindra in the automotive sector; and Wipro, TCS, L&T Infotech, Innodata, IL&FS Genpact, Infosys, HIGS (Hindujas), Tech Mahindra in the IT space.
Similarly, India has a strong presence in Pharma (Generics) where Pharma major firms like Dabur Pharma, Lupin, Torrent, ZydusCadilla, and Claris Life Sciences have set up liaison offices to promote their products.
Philippine investments in India are modest in telecommunications, IT, real estate, reprocessing of waste, and human resource development (management education).
Some of the companies operating in India are V. Merida (processing of waste), Ayala (construction & ITES); Philippine Wireless (paging service), SPI Technologies (ITES), Del Monte & Liwayway (food processing), and Lloyd Lab (Pharma), among others.
The biggest investment for the Philippines in India is the liquefied natural gas plant being set up in Kokinada by AG&P Philippines.