India and UAE are celebrating the first anniversary of the entry into force of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between India and the UAE.
Rajesh Kumar Singh, Secretary, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) and Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, jointly inaugurated the events to commemorate the first anniversary of the entry into force of the CEPA.
For India, the CEPA with UAE is the first in the region and for UAE, it is their first ever CEPA. Since the entry into force of CEPA, bilateral trade between India and UAE has witnessed tremendous growth of 20 per cent when compared to the previous year. India’s exports to the UAE also recorded a remarkable growth of 12 per cent, reaching US $ 31.3 billion in 2022-2023.
The visit of Secretary, DPIIT to UAE is his first official trip abroad since the assumption of office in April 2023, indicating the significance India attaches to a close relationship with the UAE.
As far as India’s apparel export to UAE is concerned, India presently commands 43 per cent share in UAE’s apparel imports which makes UAE one of the major buying destinations for the Indian apparel export industry.
Due to CEPA India does not face 5 per cent duty on textiles and garments, which is a big advantage for Indian companies. Though looking at the overall scenario, so far there has not been much positive impact on ground level, but in FY ’24, the results are estimated to be profitable
Also Read: FY ’24 will show the positive impact of India-UAE’s CEPA
As part of the CEPA celebrations, Rajesh Kumar Singh inaugurated the Kerala Pavilion at the Annual Investment Meeting in Abu Dhabi and also held meetings with the senior leadership of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and Mubadala, the top UAE investors in India.
