Enhancing India CARIFORUM Economic Relations and Prospects for Cooperation

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INDIA’S TRADE RELATIONS WITH THE CARIFORUM COUNTRIES

India and the Caribbean countries have maintained historic and warm ties. India’s relations to the Caribbean can be traced back to at least the 19 th century when Indian indentured labor arrived at the shores of the Caribbean countries to work on the sugar plantations. Presently, the Indo-Caribbeans comprise one of the largest ethnic group in many countries in the CARIFORUM. 17 The historic relations among India and the Caribbean countries were given an impetus when an agreement establishing CARICOM-India Joint Commission was signed in 2003. However, the First Meeting of the India-CARICOM Joint Commission was held only in 2015. During this meeting, the entire gamut of bilateral relations between India and CARICOM, including cooperation in agriculture and food security, health and pharmaceuticals, small and medium enterprises, marine development and oceanography and disaster management were discussed. Discussions were also held on important regional and multilateral issues. 18 Later, in the first ever India CARICOM Summit, the Prime Minister of India met the leaders of CARICOM on 25 September 2019, at the sidelines of United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), in New York. The first ever Summit level meeting has highlighted “the steadily intensifying and deepening relations between India and partner countries of the Caribbean.” During the meeting PM Modi reiterated India’s firm commitment to strengthen its political, economic, and cultural engagement with CARICOM 19 . In 2001, India and CARIFORUM countries traded goods worth US$ 52.4 million between them. India’s exports amounted to US$ 49.9 million, with pharmaceutical products having the

17 Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, Suriname 18 Ministry of External Affairs, India 19 PM met with the leaders of CARICOM at the UNGA- PMI India

India's Trade Relations with the CARIFORUM Countries

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