Finance Minister Nirmala invites French investors to partner with India’s journey towards Viksit Bharat 2047

 Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that the India-France Strategic Partnership is well placed to drive the next phase of sustainable, resilient and innovation-led growth. Addressing the India-France Business Roundtable in Paris, she said the global economy is undergoing rapid transformation due to technological advances, supply chain diversification, energy transition and geopolitical developments.

 

The Finance Minister invited French businesses and investors to partner with India in its journey towards Viksit Bharat 2047. She called for strengthening the India-France Strategic Partnership to achieve shared prosperity. She said India and France are trusted partners in shaping the global AI ecosystem. She noted that this partnership offers new opportunities in trusted AI, digital infrastructure and next-generation technologies. 

 

Highlighting the growing economic ties, Ms Sitharaman said bilateral trade between the two countries has doubled over the past decade. She also appreciated the presence of around one thousand French companies operating in India. The Minister said India has emerged as a leading digital economy. She highlighted Digital Public Infrastructure such as Aadhaar, UPI, DigiLocker, ONDC and India Stack. She added that India accounts for nearly half of the world’s real-time digital payments.

 

Ms Sitharaman said India’s clean energy transition is creating significant investment opportunities in renewable energy, green hydrogen, battery storage, offshore wind and smart grids. She highlighted the target of achieving 500 gigawatts of non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030, along with the National Green Hydrogen Mission and the Production Linked Incentive schemes.

 

The Finance Minister highlighted the growth of the International Financial Services Centres Authority. She said it has emerged as a leading global financial hub with more than 1,200 registered entities as of June this year. It has banking assets of 111 billion dollars and cumulative banking transactions worth 176 billion dollars. She said it offers expanding opportunities in banking, fund management, leasing, Global Capability Centres, reinsurance and sustainable finance.