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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2012-10-31 Daily Xml
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Ministerial Statement

INDIA ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Minister for State Development) (14:24): I seek leave to make a ministerial statement.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: Over the coming decades, our region of the world will go through a transformation unprecedented in history. Through the development of Asia, hundreds of millions of people will be lifted out of poverty and into the middle class. Nowhere will this change be more dramatic than in the world's first and second most populous nations, China and India.

As the white paper released by the commonwealth government on the weekend highlights, India is now the world's third largest economy, having overtaken Japan and its average annual growth is forecast at 6¾ per cent in the years to 2025.

We enter this future with a number of advantages over many of our competitors for Indian markets. South Australia currently enjoys a warm relationship with India based on our shared cultural bonds, enriched by our vibrant Indian community. But, in the future, our relationship will need to go beyond our mutual love of cricket and Indian cuisine. Already, many South Australian businesses have close connections to India, including companies like SMR, Codan and Santos.

Today, the Minister for Manufacturing, Innovation and Trade released a new strategy to develop our state's engagement with India. As a small state seeking to engage with a massive nation, it is important that we ensure that our engagement is focused on key opportunities where our capabilities align with opportunities in the Indian market. The strategy follows on from a directions paper that the government released on India earlier this year and the submissions we received from businesses and universities.

The first phase of the 10-year India engagement strategy will focus on opportunities in aerospace, defence, energy and natural resources, clean energy, as well as education and training—an existing strength of our relationship with India. Later phases will focus on other opportunities. These choices reflect our state's existing strengths as well as our government's strategic priorities around spreading the benefits of the mining boom for all South Australians and growing advanced manufacturing.

To implement the new strategy, the government will establish a South Australia-India council which will comprise experts from business, government and the community. This council will be chaired by Brian Hayes QC, a former national chair of the Australia India Business Council and the founder of its South Australian chapter. In that role, Mr Hayes chaired a number of annual joint meetings between Australian and Indian trade ministers and business leaders.

I will be travelling to India next month to continue the government's engagement with India. My visit will include meetings with key business leaders interested in doing business and investing in South Australia to further the strategy announced today.

In the coming months, the government will also announce our strategy for China to address the challenges and opportunities offered by the growth in the world's largest nation, as well as outlining our response to the Hartley review into our overseas representative offices. The government believes that the opportunities offered by the development of Asia will help secure the economic future and jobs of South Australians for many years to come.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Minister for mines, order!

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