Marking 25 years of the India Economic Summit, the inaugural conference of the co-chairs of the summit had a lot to say on the journey of the summit and the change that India has undergone during these years. Twenty-five years ago when the summit was inaugurated by Rajiv Gandhi, it was a very difficult task to project India as a country profitable for business for international players.
However, 25 years later India is charting an entirely different trajectory. From being one of the fastest growing economies in the world to being an economy worth inspiration which has weathered the downturn and emerged resilient beyond expectations, India is nothing like it was perceived 25 years ago.
Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, expressed amazement at the way the brand India has changed from the first to the 25th economic summit.
"Twenty-five years ago it was an uphill battle to sell India in the international market. But today India is a brand and we all know how precious brands are nowadays. This brand India has a lot to do with the entrepreneurial spirit of the country," said Klaus during the co-chairs' press conference at the India Economic Summit.
The co-chairs included chairman of PepsiCo Indra Nooyi; chairman of Bharat Forge Baba N Kalyani; chairman of Renault France and Nissan Japan Carlos Ghosn, among others. All stated how India has evolved its image to develop into a brand wooed by the best in the world. Klaus Schwab further added that the world economy is going to change at a faster pace than anticipated in the coming years and India's significance cannot be underestimated.
Carlos Ghosn added that India's economic success comes from its being at the heart of a growing demand which is being matched up by frugal engineering and competitive pricing strategies. He said that even when the world is tackling the economic downturn, India is successful in keeping its auto exports at decent levels.
Klaus Schwab also lauded the way India has evolved as a microcosm which is balancing different ethnicities with varying interests. Indra Nooyi also said that in a milieu in which issues of the world are growing exponentially, it is in the global interest that a democracy like India should survive.
"There is no doubt that India is a major player and will continue to be so for the next few decades. For the principles of democracy to survive, India must survive," said Nooyi. Amidst talk about how India will bank on its demographic dividend, questions were raised about limited infrastructure and development disparities.
The summit, which is aimed at being an interaction between stakeholders of economic development, will also address issues like hunger, poverty, climate change and gender disparity which will bring in participation from an extensive list of civil society organisations.
"At a time when the world economy is in a state of flux, questions regarding global hunger and the role of capitalism are being raised. It is time that we should develop an action plan and hold ourselves accountable for progress," added Nooyi.
