India-Madagascar chamber of commerce launched in Antananarivo

The event was attended by Valery Fitzgerald Ramonjavelo, Secretary-General of the Presidency of Madagascar, Secretary-General of Ministry of Trade, President of Chamber of Commerce of Antananarivo, Malagasy traders and members of Indian Diaspora.

In his opening remarks in the event, Indian Ambassador to Madagascar Abhay Kumar noted: "Bilateral trade in 2021-22 between India and Madagascar stood at USD 363.99 million. India was the second-largest origin of imports for Madagascar in 2020 (EIU-2022) constituting 9.4 per cent of total imports by Madagascar. There is huge potential in the trade sector that the two nations can explore ranging from agricultural commodities to pharmaceuticals, from machinery to textiles."

The Indian Ambassador added Madagascar is a beneficiary of India's Duty-Free Preferential Tariff Scheme that provides tariff preferences by India on products originating in Madagascar.

"I firmly believe that we may consider setting a goal of achieving USD 1 billion trade figures target between India and Madagascar in the next five years. India-Madagascar Chamber of Commerce will go a long way in strengthening the bilateral trade relationship between our two countries. It will serve as a focal point for numerous Indian and Malagasy traders who would like to do business with our two countries and also those who wish to extend their markets to India or Madagascar," he said.

The event also witnessed remarks made by Valery Fitzgerald Ramonjavelo where he welcomed the announcement of the India-Madagascar Chamber of Commerce. "Madagascar is six hours away from the huge market of 1.4 billion people of India and we must work towards maximum utilization of this opportunity," he said.

Special videos on Ayurveda and trade opportunities between India and Madagascar were showcased during the event. The event saw a cultural performance by ITEC and ICCR alumni in Madagascar to mark the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav. (ANI)