The first Business 20 (B20) Conference of North East India began at the City Convention Centre, Imphal on Friday with 23 countries participating in it. Manipur is hosting the first of the four B20 conferences scheduled in the region. B20 is the business community’s platform to engage with G20.
The participating nations included Australia, Argentina, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Chad, Canada, China, France, Greece, lceland, Japan, Nepal, Russia, Seychelles, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland, Tunisia, Uganda, the United States and the United Kingdom.
Also Read: Manipur hosts first of four B20 sessions in Northeast India
During the inaugural session, Chief Minister N Biren drew the attention of delegates to Manipur’s growth and development works, expressing the need for providing a platform to help explore investment and partnership opportunities and shape policies toward decisive action.
Biren expressed his belief that the deliberations would provide insights and perspectives and help forge sustainable and enduring partnership for Manipur, stating that Northeast region is India’s “new engine of growth”.
“With a theme 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’- 'One Earth, One Family, One Future', the B20 Conference will shape policies towards sustainable growth and development while ushering in peace and progress”, Biren said.
Manipur has the perfect setting for implementing India’s Act East Policy, Biren said, adding that it is the bridge between South East Asia and India. To unlock the untapped opportunities in the state and the region, Centre and states are working together as “Double Engines of Growth” for putting in place robust physical and social infrastructures, the CM stated.
Highlighting road infrastructure as top priority for the government, Biren said that road travel from Manipur to Bangkok within 16-18 hours will be possible soon once the stretch of Asian Highway within Myanmar gets completed.
The portion from Imphal to Moreh, the border town bordering Myanmar is now complete. An Elevated Highway across Imphal City for bypassing the city’s heavy traffic is also under advance stage of consideration. Several other roads in the state are at various stages of construction, the CM said.
Mentioning Imphal International Airport, helicopter services and train services, Biren said they will provide opportunities in the logistics sector, generating employment and business opportunities.
Stating that the state is also enjoying reliable and quality 24x7 power supply, Biren informed that to achieve self-reliance in power generation, preparation of DPR is under process for 29 hydro projects.
“Bandhs and blockades are a thing of the past now. 34 Police Outposts along Indo-Myanmar International Border and six Police Outposts along National Highway-37 are coming up to strengthen border security and management. An Integrated Check Post at Moreh has also been commissioned,” said Biren.
Biren said to promote investment in the state, a new Industrial and Investment Promotion Policy of Manipur has been adopted. The state government is also considering setting up an Investment Promotion Agency to facilitate investments, he said.
To promote “Ease of Doing Business”, the Manipur Industrial Single Window Clearance Act, 2021 was enacted. Given the importance of logistics, the Manipur Integrated Logistics Policy, 2022 was notified.
To provide adequate land for developmental needs, the government also approved setting up of a Land Bank. Industrial Estates in Manipur are being made available on lease. Lease Rules to regulate use of Government land for projects and partnerships have been framed. Under Manipur Public Procurement Policy, the government is giving preference to products made in Manipur for government purchases, he said.
Multilateral Funding Agencies are now coming forward to fund major projects in the state. Presently, 4 (four) Externally Aided Projects are under implementation in Manipur. These are in the areas of water supply, road connectivity, dam rehabilitation and community-based forest management, involving a total project cost of about 600 million US Dollars.
Another seven projects are being taken up with funding from multilateral banks for a total project cost of about 1 billion US Dollars in the areas of road infrastructure, restoration and rejuvenation of water bodies, watershed development, eco-tourism, sewerage and IT-SEZ (Information Technology - Special Economic Zone), he added.
In the tourism sector, Manipur witnessed an increasing number of tourism businesses generated in Manipur in recent years. The tourist arrival figures of Manipur in the year 2019-20, was 1.67 lakh Domestic Tourist Arrivals and 12,102 Foreign Tourist Arrivals. The figures had dropped due to the covid pandemic however, arrivals have started picking up again.
So, the state is promoting the state of Manipur as a preferred tourism destination and has come up with an investor friendly New Tourism Policy, he said.
Mentioning the handloom and handicrafts and also the textile policy of the state, Biren also highlighted Manipur has huge untapped potential in medicinal plants, horticultural products, aromatic plants and spices. Local produce like aromatic black rice, pineapple, oranges, ginger, etc. are famous for their unique taste. With soil and climatic conditions very similar to that of South East Asia, there is immense scope for investment in post-harvest management of agricultural and horticultural products here.
Union Minister of State for External Affairs, RK Ranjan Singh said that the North East Region of India is blessed with scenic natural beauty, rich biodiversity, rare wild life, and warm welcoming people. The region offers unforgettable visits for tourists interested in wildlife, and ethnic tourism along with mountaineering, trekking and adventure tourism.
The business community of North East and Manipur, in particular, is eager to showcase its business potential. Manipur has organically developed, made a mark and created a brand value for themselves, in the hospitality and care-giving sector. These sectors need to be pushed for international partnerships now, to enable our youth to reap their full potential, Ranjan said.
He said the business community of the state and the north east look forward to enhancing partnership in sectors like tourism, hospitality, healthcare and handloom etc immensely.
He expressed that the connectivity’s project in the north east will boost tourism and people to people contact in the region. International partnership will help the youth immensely to realise their full potential.
“Our businesses are ready to grab the opportunity of international partnership”, said Ranjan.
Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Som Parkash said that the G20 Group of nations represents around 85% of global GDP, over 75% of Global trade and two-thirds of the world population. Following the presidency of Indonesia, India assumed the presidency of G20 on December 1, 2022.
B20, which is a group of businesses, has been a prominent part of the G20 since its creation in 2010. It brings together the business community to present recommendations to the G20 governments. The G20 benefits from extensive discussions and studies conducted by Engagement Groups composed of representatives of the private sector, civil society, and independent bodies, he said.
Som Parkash said that the states of the north-east region are now turning a new page in history. Highest priority is being given for development of the north-east. The government of India is giving special focus to the North-Eastern Region. All central government departments are required to allocate 10% of their budget for the region and the Ministry of Development of Northeastern Region has been established to coordinate development efforts. Efforts have been made to improve infrastructure in the region, including intra-state, inter-state, and cross-border.
“We need to think like a startup, constantly focus on newer and better ideas and strive to spread them across the country to improve efficiency, effectiveness, productivity, transparency, and the integrity of systems and processes. We must work together with other countries to build a more inclusive, fair, and sustainable global economy”, he added.
The inaugural session was attended by CII North East Council, Gopi K More, chief secretary of Manipur, commissioners of Manipur government, ministers and MLAs, DCs, SDOs and other officials.
In the plenary session, chief secretary Rajesh Kumar spoke on investment opportunities and support ecosystem for doing business in Manipur; chairman of Shija Hospital Kh Palin spoke on healthcare and medical tourism; Babina Healthcare and Hospitality chairman, Th Dhabali spoke on tourism and hospitality; Cube Ten Tech. Pvt. Ltd. CEO Haobam Joyremba spoke on ICT; KB Philanthrophy CEO, L Manoranjan spoke on handloom and textiles.
