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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2012-11-27 Daily Xml
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INDIA ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY

Ms THOMPSON (Reynell) (14:31): My question is also to the Premier. Can the Premier inform the house of some of the outcomes of his recent delegation to India?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Minister for State Development) (14:31): I thank the honourable member for her question. I returned home from the delegation to India on the weekend. As all of us know, India is an incredibly important trading partner already for South Australia, but its massive and rapidly growing—

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: I didn't stage for that. That was not a photograph that I staged for. Given its massive and rapidly growing population, rapid urbanisation and development and its close links with Australia and South Australia, this relationship is becoming even more significant. By 2030, India will be the world's third-largest economy, so we are very fortunate to be located in this region of the world with these existing ties and opportunities.

Of course, we are joined together by language, by a shared love of sport, and obviously cricket in particular. It is amazing, the literacy about cricket with India. Senior business leaders can tell you Sheffield Shield scores. That is how tuned in they are to cricket. They are incredibly excited about the redevelopment of the Adelaide Oval. They regard it as one of the great ovals in the world; after Lords, probably the greatest cricket oval in the world.

The purpose of the visit though was to lay the groundwork for Indian investment in our state, following up on our government's 10-year strategy of engagement. The India strategy sets out four sectors of the South Australian economy that we believe can take the most advantage of the rapid development that exists in the world's most populous democracy. They are: aerospace and defence, energy and natural resources, education and training, and clean technology.

India has the very thing that we need in South Australia to develop these sectors: extensive capital, consumer markets, optimism and a will to invest. The feedback that I received from many business leaders, academic representatives and government officials is that India has for a long time had its eyes closed to the opportunities that our nation presented, but now that is no longer the case. They are looking to South Australia as a place to invest.

I met with the chairman and managing director of the Export-Import Bank, which is the major central bank funding overseas investments. It has committed to further engaging with us, which will likely include them commissioning a research paper on South Australia and promoting South Australian opportunities throughout India. I also met with heads of major companies, such as Tata, Mahindra, Samvardhana Motherson, Bhushan Steel, Podar Enterprise and Waaree Energies, which are all globally-orientated businesses looking to expand their operations further, and they are interested in exploring opportunities in South Australia.

The latter company, Waaree Energies, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the state government moving towards the construction of an advanced manufacturing plant and solar energy operation here in South Australia. It is a testament to our leadership role that they have chosen to do this here in South Australia. Tata, the largest conglomerate in India, has a growing presence in Australia and intends to visit South Australia early next year to expand their outlook and opportunities, including in the minerals and ICT sectors. There are also many significant opportunities in education and training, something our universities are well aware of. I witnessed UniSA sign an MOU with India's leading university, JNU, strengthening ties between the two institutions.

This is just a small example of the extraordinary opportunities that exist in the development of India. It is a country that is beginning to understand its strength in the world. Its self-respect is growing. They certainly regard the decision we took at our national conference to demonstrate trust in their country by paving the way for uranium sales to India as a very important step in the relationship. The Prime Minister's visit was another crucial step in the relationship, and we think there are real opportunities for our state and, indeed, our nation.

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