Blitz Bureau
INDIA and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have agreed to establish a virtual trade corridor to streamline logistics and reduce processes for bilateral trade.
The India-UAE Virtual Trade Corridor deal, signed in the presence of Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khalend Bin Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan during his recent visit to India, was one of the two agreements signed on September 10. This initiative will be implemented under the framework agreement on the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC), signed between the two countries in February this year.
Crucial IMEEC step
The virtual trade corridor aims to reduce administrative processes and time, lower logistics and transport costs, and enhance ease of doing business. It will be supported by a web-based interface called MAITRI (Master Application for International Trade and Regulatory Interface), which integrates multiple Indian operational portals to connect with those in the UAE.
The deal, according to officials, is a crucial step towards the IMEEC. At the forefront of the ambitious IMEEC are Indian ports which will play a pivotal role in India’s journey to becoming a $5-trillion economy. The project envisages a sea-link between India and Jabel Ali port in UAE from where a rail with transport the goods to the Haifa port in Israel via Saudi Arabia and Jordan. From here, goods will again be shipped to Europe via the sea route, reported Business Today.
Industry experts say that the number of Indian seafarers in global shipping is expected to increase to 20 per cent in the next decade from the current 10 per cent. And, with more than 90 per cent of global trade moving via shipping, the role of Indian ports and shippers is expected to explode. Many big ships of the world are completely dependent on Indian sailors.
According to McKinsey & Company, the Indian maritime sector is currently worth about $130 billion and is expected to grow to $300 billion by 2025. Of this, the share of the shipping industry is estimated to be around $95 billion, while the share of ports will be around $60 billion. India is already in the ‘whitelist’ of the International Maritime Organisation. The listing guarantees proper licensing systems, training centres, flag state control and port state control in the member countries and propels great demand for the Indian maritime players.
Major ports in India handled 818 million tons (MT) of cargo traffic in FY24, up 4.45 per cent from 784 MT in FY 2023. This comprised a large part of India’s merchandise exports and imports.
