Batting to strengthen bilateral cooperation in trade and commerce, especially in the areas of IT, e-governance and cybersecurity, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu urged Indian compes to consider Estonia as a launchpad for European markets.
Addressing the India-Estonia Business Forum here on Wednesday, the Vice President said the joint participation between the two countries is "an indication of our mutual desire and commitment to strengthening business ties."
During his address, Naidu stated that the bilateral trade between India and Estonia is growing and stands at USD172 million at present. However, bilateral investments are still at a nascent level, he added.
"There is great scope for deepening our engagement across sectors and for enhancing trade and investment in both directions," the Vice President told the crowd.
The Vice President said that India has been moving on its development journey with great alacrity and hoped that the country will become a USD five trillion economy in the next five years.
"The focus of the government is to transform the lives of our people through a number of path-breaking initiatives like Make in India, Digital India and Clean India," Naidu said.
He lauded Estonia for taking rapid strides in e-governance sector in the last few decades. "There are regular trade exhibitions and sector-specific business events in India - we invite Estonian compes to keep visiting India frequently to familiarise themselves with the country and the emerging business opportunities," Naidu said.
On the occasion, India and Estonia signed and exchanged Memoranda of Understanding on cooperation in the field of e-governance and emerging digital technologies and cooperation in the area of cybersecurity.
"I hope this #business forum would be a good beginning for a new collaborative partnership between the business houses of the two countries," he said.
"I shall be happy if this dialogue results into tangible investments & new business ventures that will usher in prosperity in both countries," the Vice President added.
Earlier on the same day, Naidu met Estonian Prime Minister Juri Ratas at the Stenbock House. He also held talks with Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid where they reviewed bilateral relations and discussed issues of mutual interest.
The Vice President had arrived in Estonia on Tuesday evening in the final leg of his three-nation visit in Europe. He earlier visited Lithua and Latvia and held bilateral engagements in these countries.
( With inputs from ANI )