‘India building economic bridges’: PM Modi hails country's business push at BRICS forum

India’s focus is on reducing barriers to trade and increasing opportunities for business, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at the BRICS Business Forum on Friday, a statement that acquires significance in the context of disruptions to global trade over the past 18 months, first on account of US action on tariffs, and then because of the war in West Asia that choked a key shipping route for energy supplies.

Modi added that India strongly supports freedom of navigation and the safety of seafarers. India is disproportionately represented in global merchant navies, and according to earlier statements by the ministry of external affairs, at least 10 Indian seafarers have died in the West Asia conflict and five in attacks on ships in the Black Sea.

“Global trade can move forward only when sea lanes are secure, supply routes are open, and seafarers are safe. And therefore, India is a strong supporter of freedom of navigation and the safety of seafarers,” he said.

“Today, when trade barriers are increasing in the world, India is building economic bridges,” he said, citing examples of FTAs with about 40 countries since 2014 to boost trade amid global headwinds.

“Our approach in BRICS is also the same -- to reduce barriers and increase opportunities for businesses,” Modi said. Therefore, under our chairship, we have formed new cooperation networks in areas such as agriculture, health, skills, and smart grids, he added.

He named some of the initiatives, such as the BRICS Incubator Network, BRICS MSME Portal, and BRICS Startup Innovation Fund, as examples to connect businesses, startups and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) of member countries with markets and finance.

Addressing a large number of delegates from India and other member countries at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, Modi said: “All of you can take advantage of these cooperation frameworks and increase the exchange of investment and talent among our countries.”

Emphasising the theme of India’s BRICS chairship -- “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability” – the Prime Minister said this mantra has also been the foundation of India’s economic and trade policy for the last 12 years. “If we talk about resilience, India has made supply chains more diversified and reliable, from energy to technology. The result of this resilience is that, even amid global uncertainties, India today is providing confidence of growth and stability.” India’s economy grew at 7.8% in the first quarter of this year.

India has done this by building infrastructure, promoting start-ups, and focusing on innovation, Modi explained.

He gave the example of India’s investments in creating public infrastructure such as roads, railways, ports, and airports, and in creating new capacities in strategic sectors such as shipbuilding, semiconductors, quantum, critical minerals, and biotechnology.

“Today, a startup revolution is taking place in India,” Modi said; India boasts over 2 lakh startups and more than 120 unicorns. “Our startups are transforming education and healthcare through AI, working on green hydrogen and batteries, and also crossing new frontiers in defence and space. Now, through BRICS as well, we have to take these world-class innovations to global markets.”

The PM highlighted India’s innovation story in digital payments, which has been scaled up to almost the entire population of 1.4 billion people. “India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has given new momentum to financial inclusion and digital transactions at population scale. Today, 50% of the world’s real-time payments take place through this technology… We are proud that many countries are adopting this world-class ecosystem of India. Innovators from BRICS countries can also, based on this experience, develop new solutions for their own countries,” he said.

Underscoring the growing importance of BRICS since 2006, Modi said the grouping initially had only four member countries, which have now risen to 21, representing 50% of the world’s population, 40% of GDP and over 25% of trade. BRICS has 11 members— Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates, and 10 partners—Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.

“Not only that, while global GDP has grown by 2.5 times during these years, the combined GDP of BRICS nations increased by approximately 4.5 times,” Modi said, referring to the growing economic strength of BRICS that increased about twice the speed of global growth.