India is taking a significant step towards strengthening its trade and investment ties with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) by setting up a dedicated EFTA desk.
This platform aims to facilitate business collaboration between India and the four-nation bloc, which includes Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein.
The move is part of India's efforts to operationalise the Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA) signed with EFTA on March 10 last year. The agreement is expected to come into effect by late 2025.
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal expressed confidence in the potential benefits of this agreement. He highlighted that the $100 billion foreign direct investment (FDI) commitment from EFTA could serve as a catalyst for attracting total investments worth $400-500 billion into India.
The agreement also brings significant trade advantages, as it allows lower or zero duties on several premium products, including Swiss watches, chocolates, and cut and polished diamonds.
The EFTA Dedicated Desk will serve as a centralised support system for companies from these nations looking to expand in India. It will provide valuable market insights, regulatory guidance, business matchmaking services, and assistance in understanding India’s policies and investment opportunities.
By setting up this platform, India aims to streamline trade processes and encourage greater participation from EFTA-based businesses in its growing economy.
A key highlight of the TEPA agreement is EFTA’s commitment to invest $100 billion in India over 15 years. This is the first time that India has secured such a large investment commitment in any trade agreement.
Goyal emphasised that this investment could generate around one million direct jobs, leading to the creation of five to six million additional jobs both directly and indirectly.
Trade between India and EFTA has been on a steady rise, reaching $24 billion in 2023-24, up from $18.65 billion in 2022-23. However, the trade balance continues to favour the European bloc, with Switzerland being India’s largest trading partner and investor among the four EFTA nations.
Between April 2000 and September 2024, India received $10.72 billion in foreign direct investment from Switzerland, underscoring the strong economic ties between the two countries.
To further encourage foreign investment, India has offered EFTA nations the opportunity to establish dedicated industrial enclaves.
These could be set up in one of the 20 industrial smart cities being developed under the National Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (NICDC) or within the 100 industrial hub-and-spoke model areas announced in the Union Budget.
Discussions are currently underway to determine the feasibility of dedicating some of these industrial zones to companies from EFTA countries.
At the launch event held at Bharat Mandapam, Piyush Goyal inaugurated the EFTA Dedicated Desk alongside key representatives from the EFTA bloc.
The event saw the participation of Helene Budliger Artieda, Swiss State Secretary; Tomas Norvoll, Norway’s State Secretary of Trade and Industry; Martin Eyjolfsson, Iceland’s Permanent Secretary of State; and Dominique Hasler, Liechtenstein’s Minister of External Affairs, among other officials.
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