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Israel
Eyes India as Major Trading Partner
Israel and India have had a long,
though unofficial, economic relationship
until it was openly announced in 1992.
Since then, the volume of bilateral
trade between India and Israel had
grown by 10 folds to about $4 billion
in 2008.
“Israel and India are complementing
economies, meaning we do not compete
we complete,” said Elad Goz,
Israeli Consul for Economic Affairs
in Mumbai.
“Therefore the Government of
Israel has declared India as a preferred
partner for increasing trade volume
in the coming years,” Goz added.
He said Israel is keen on investing
resources to assist Indian and Israeli
companies forge alliances and joint
ventures, especially in the following
sectors:
• Water & Environmental
Technologies
• Renewable Energy Resources
• Home Land Security
• Telecommunications
• Bio-Technology
• Software
• Infrastructure
Israel will continue to support companies
seeking to form agricultural and rural
development initiatives as well.
“The main obstacle that we encounter
is in finding the right local partners
for Israeli companies wishing to start
operations in India,' Goz said. “Israeli
companies find it difficult to understand
the way the Indian market works, and
therefore, need a suitable local partner
to assist them,” he added.
Goz said that finding a local partner
is a difficult task, and “one
of our main missions Goz said at the
Economic Department of the Consulate
General is to assist in this task.”
He pointed out that another obstacle
is in understanding the Indian laws
and regulations, especially those
concerning direct foreign investment
(FDI) and tariffs.
“We are trying to assist Israeli
companies to understand and to overcome
these hurdles in order to promote
Israeli FDI and exports to India,'
Goz said.
In a message to Open Trade readers,
who comprise diplomatic personnel
represented by 23-member countries
of the Trade Commissioners' Forum
in Mumbai, decision-makers in government
and the corporate sector, Goz said:
“I would like to stress that
Israel sees India as one of our main
trading partners, and we look forward
to expanding and broadening the great
relationship between our countries.”
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High-Tech
Israeli Security Systems for India
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The Israel Export and International
Cooperation Institute (IEICI), established
in1958 jointly by the Israel Government
and the private sector bodies as a
non-profit organisation. IEICI promotes
Israel's industrial exports and exports
of services as well as develops trade
relations, cooperation and strategic
alliances with overseas companies.
The 2,600 member companies of IEICI
comprise 90 percent of Israel's industrial
exporters.
The first India-Israel HLS (Homeland
Security) Cooperation Forum, a delegation
comprising of 15 leading Israeli companies
in the field of Homeland Security
Technologies and Equipment, held its
meeting place in India in the third
week of March 2009. The forum was
led by IEICI Chief Executive Officer
Avi Hefetz and covered two cities
of India, New Delhi and Mumbai.
The forum provided an ideal platform
for Israeli security companies to
exhibit their advance security systems
to the Indian market and also forge
new ties by entering into strategic
partnership with industry leaders.
In a development that would boost
exchange of ideas, expertise and technologies
between India and Israel, IEICI has
selected Mahindra Special Services
Group (MSSG), India's leading Corporate
Security Risk Consulting firm, as
the Homeland Security (HLS) partner.
This is the first time that a high-level
delegation of security companies from
Israel, such as Athena GS3, Controp,
Elta, Nice Systems and Shiltex visited
India to take stock of the present
security environment in this country.
“I am confident that with the
combined expertise of MSSG and BDO-121,
Israeli and Indian companies will
achieve new heights of success in
business cooperation and mutual benefits,”
said CEO of IEICI, Avi Hefetz.
Avi Hefetz also said, “This
forum is an important business event,
intended to further our efforts at
promoting industrial cooperation and
trade with rapidly developing markets
such as India. I am happy to note
that our bilateral trade and economic
relations have been growing and developing
rapidly in recent years. Israel and
India share a lot in common and have
strong bilateral economic ties. India
today is Israel's third largest trading
partner in Asia and one of the ten
top most country globally. Israel's
HLS industry has initiated and implemented
state of the art homeland security
solutions, based on doctrine, experience
and know-how acquired through decades
of combating internal security and
terror threats. I am confident that
with the expertise of MSSG and BDO-I2I,
Israeli and Indian companies will
achieve new heights of success in
business cooperation and mutual benefits.”
He also said, “Israel and India
are both suffering from threats of
terrorism. And I believe in the utmost
necessity and indeed the vital need,
to unite all the democratic world's
available resources to fight international
terrorism. In these times of economic
crisis that the world is facing, Israeli
and Indian companies should get together
and do more and more business. I hope
that this delegation is the first
of many more initiatives between India
and Israel that will lead to new and
mutually beneficial business opportunities.”
Commenting on the forum, Israel Consul
General H.E. Orna Sagiv said “Israel
and India will not be competing but
will be complementing each other.”
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