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With the FDI inflow to India dropping 38% to $22.42 billion in 2012-13, the country’s investment promotion agency InvestIndia is scouting for tie-ups with more countries to boost the foreign direct investment numbers in the coming years.
InvestIndia, set up in 2010, is a joint venture between FICCI, Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP)and various state governments. The venture’s mandate is to attract investments to India as well as scouting opprtunities for Indian investors abroad.
“In the last three years, we have extended our services to 1200 quieries and about 40% of these have taken off as investments at the ground level and others are in the process. For hardselling India abroad, we already signed memorandum of understandings with nine countries and are in the process of increasing working relationships with almost all the countries in the world to increase the FDI inflow. For this, policy level initiatives like increase in FDI cap in various sectors are also needed,” said Anupam Srivastava, managing director, InvestIndia. Wach of these quieries in the last three years were looking at an investment of $5-10 million minimum.
The agencies that InvestIndia has signed up MoUs include Invitalia, Japan External Trade Organization(JETRO), Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency(KOTRA), UK Trade & Investment(UKTI), Ubifrance, Invest in France, Board of Investment Mauritius, Select USA and Czech Invest, while it has close working relationships with another 30 countries. The drop in FDI inflow to $22.42 billion last fiscal is compared to $35.12 billion in 2011-12.
While FICCI holds 51% equity in the venture, DIPP has 35% and various state governments hold 0.5% each. According to Srivastava, FICCI’s presence is adding the private sector efficiency to the venture.
“We are also providing after care services to countries that are having huge investments in the country. This will include services like facilitation in land acquisition and clearing regulatory hurdles. And also in finalising investment destinations. We are also holding strategic investor meetings and campaigns in various countries to hardsell ourselves,” he said. The company is providing after care services to Korea, Japan. Thailand, Australia and Singapore now, and is in the process of adding China to the list.
Out of the 1200-odd quieries that InvestIndia got in the last three years, more than 680 are from Asia and about 300 are from Europe in various sectors like infrastructure, manufacturing and services. As per government instructions, the venture is kept in loop about the policy changes in 40 sectors across the country. Among the states that are most active and investor favourites in terms of attracting investmenst according to the organisation are Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, rajasthan and Punjab.
