Doha

FinanceMinister Nirmala Sitharaman has held bilateral meetings with ministers from Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, Jordan and Nepal on the sidelines of the AIIB annual meeting. On the first day of her visit to Qatar on September 28, Sitharaman met her Saudi counterpart Mohammed Al-Jadaan who said that Saudi Arabia looks forward to early implementation of the bilateral investment treaty. "Both ministers welcomed the successful conclusion of negotiations on the India-Saudi Arabia Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT), which will provide a stronger and more predictable framework for bilateral investments and further strengthen investor confidence," the finance ministry said.

The Union Finance Minister conveyed that Saudi Arabia is India's trusted and valued strategic partner and highlighted the wide-ranging partnership between the two countries across defence, security, trade, investment, energy, technology, healthcare, education, culture and people-to-people exchanges, the ministry added.

Both the ministers discussed further strengthening the strategic partnership between the two countries. The Saudi minister expressed keen interest in welcoming investments from India. Sitharaman also met AIIB (Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank) Governor from Switzerland Ambassador Pietro Lazzeri and highlighted the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) as a trusted partner for foreign investors seeking to access opportunities in India. She invited Swiss investors to explore NIIF infrastructure funds to gain exposure to India's infrastructure sector.

Ambassador Lazzeri said that Switzerland sees significant opportunities in India for portfolio diversification and investment.

He mentioned the upcoming state visit to India and the 2nd EFTA Prosperity Summit in New Delhi. He said Swiss Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) growth in India is outpacing global FDI, and sought support for finalisation of the Bilateral Investment Protection Agreement. Lazzeri also expressed interest in cooperation in the financial sector and sustainable finance. The Union Finance Minister encouraged Swiss investors and financial services entities to explore investment opportunities in India's homegrown financial services centre at GIFT IFSC, which offers financial services and products, tax benefits and a business-friendly environment. Sitharaman met Nepal Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle, and discussed Nepal's assessment and priorities for reconstruction and recovery following the floods, with emphasis on continued engagement between the teams to work out the specifics of any support that India can provide at this critical time.

The early operationalisation and utilisation of the UPI-NPI linkage was also discussed as an initiative beneficial to both countries.

Sitharaman also met Jordan Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Zeina Zeid Toukan and discussed strengthening bilateral cooperation. Sitharaman noted that India is the fourth largest trading partner for Jordan and highlighted the target of enhancing bilateral trade to USD 5 billion by 2030.