Piyush Goyal to lead Indian delegation at World Economic Forum, Davos

Post Davos, the Commerce and Industry Minister will travel to UK for trade talks

Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal will lead the Indian team at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos from May 22 to 26.

The annual meet of the WEF, a Geneva-based international organisation working towards an array of global issues, will take place in a physical form for the first time since January 2020. Last year, the event took place virtually given the pandemic situation. The WEF, which was to be held earlier this year, was delayed to May due to the spread of the Omicron variant.

The Indian government’s delegation will include Mansukhlal Mandaviya, minister of health and family welfare, chemicals and fertilisers, and Hardeep Singh Puri, minister for petroleum and natural gas, housing and urban affairs. Chief ministers and senior ministers of six states — Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana — will also be part of the delegation along with senior officials.

Sunil Mittal, founder and chairman of Bharti Enterprises, Mukesh Ambani, chairman, Reliance Industries, Gautam Adani, chairman and founder of the Adani Group, Kumarmangalam Birla, chairman of the Aditya Birla Group, Roshni Nadar Malhotra, chairperson, HCL Technologies, Pawan Munjal, chief executive officer of Hero Group, would be among industry leaders who will participate in the WEF deliberations.

“This event would further help reinforce India’s position as an important and relevant stakeholder in shaping the global narrative, particularly as India assumes the presidency of the G-20 in 2023. The WEF will also be a platform to project India as an attractive investment destination in view of its robust economic growth and stable macroeconomic indicators,” an official statement said.

At Davos, sessions will be organised at the India Lounge keeping in mind the country’s strategic advantage, existing and upcoming incentive architecture, industry investment potential and market opportunity. 

The key topics that would be addressed during the sessions will include policy and ease of doing business reforms, energy transition, digital economy, opportunities in National Monetisation Pipeline, India as an entrepreneurial destination shaping the unicorn story, growing talents in the digital space, emphasis on innovation and research in the healthcare ecosystem.

As many as 2,500 delegates, including over 50 heads of states, are expected to attend the four-day event.

Goyal will also be visiting the UK on May 26 and 27 May to meet British government officials and businesses on the progress made in free trade deal negotiations and the way forward.

Both nations aim to sign a trade deal by Diwali.