India is a preferred place for Swiss businesses: State Secretary for Economic Affairs

Bern [Switzerland], June 11 : Helene Budliger Artieda, State Secretary for Economic Affairs, Switzerland, on Tuesday said India is a preferred place for Swiss industry, as she highlighted India's huge consumer base, firm economic growth, and being a democracy.

"We certainly see India as a preferred place for our industry because you are a democracy that helps. We feel united in values. You are an excellent consumer base. You have excellent growth," she told reporters at a press conference during Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal's two-day Switzerland visit.

"We really like to have a good relationship with as many markets as we can, but we do believe in the potential of India," Helene Budliger Artieda said.

She said she is impressed with the Indian government's efforts to improve the lives of its people and alleviate poverty.

"Minister Goyal this morning spoke about on how much people have been able to be lifted out of poverty and actually join the middle class in India, and those are exactly the consumers we hope that at one point they will eat Swiss chocolate or buy a Swiss watch, and you know, a Swiss watch you have of course the very expensive ones, but then you have also those that are equally good in quality but more affordable," she supplemented.

EFTA trade deal has currently been ratified by three of the four members - Liechtenstein, Norway, and Iceland.

"We are a direct democracy, so in Switzerland, we have to wait 100 days to see if anyone in Switzerland wishes to take a referendum. These 100 days is a formality, in the case of India it will be over 10th of July, and we are very (sure) that we can deposit our ratified document before the end of September," she said.

"We're very ambitious about it. We spoke about it also with Minister Goyal, and we hope that it will enter into force first of October," she said.

She said the huge number of Swiss businesses that took part in an industry event, in the presence of Minister Goyal, reflected the country's interest in India.

On the second day of his visit, Goyal addressed a gathering of over 1,000 Swiss businesses, accompanied by Swiss Federal Councillor Guy Parmelin. Goyal highlighted India's "remarkable transformation" over the past 11 years in terms of technology, innovation, and how the country offers great avenues for doing business.

"We had a record number of people in attendance, you know, I know in India you're used to big events, but in Switzerland, to have an event with 1,500 people in the room carefully listening to your minister showcases how much people are interested," she said.

"This afternoon we did one on one meetings and if I just count a little bit in my head on what we heard today, how excited Swiss companies are, I think it will be very easy to reach that target of USD 100 billion (investment in Indi as part of EFTA deal) and more importantly for me it's also the 1 million job pledge that we did," she added.

"This partnership with EFTA India should be a win-win situation for everyone. You have a very young population that needs jobs because you're trying to uplift people out of poverty into the middle class and upper middle class, and this is what Swiss companies can provide because we do compete on quality, precision, innovation, and usually these jobs pay well."

Under EFTA, these four countries have pledged to invest USD 100 billion in India over the next 15 years.

The negotiations between EFTA and India started in 2008, 21 rounds of negotiations were needed to reach an agreement on 10 March 2024, as per EFTA website. EFTA is an intergovernmental organisation set up in 1960 for the promotion of free trade and economic integration for the benefit of its four Member States.

"Norway, Liechtenstein, and Iceland have reified this agreement. Switzerland's process will last another two and a half months (or so). It is expected that we will be able to implement this in October," Minister Goyal told ANI.

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