Prime Minister Modi unveils splashy new "Make in India" event to grab billions of dollars in foreign investment.
It promises to be quite the spectacle: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is trying to position India as the world’s next economic superpower, and has unveiled the splashy week-long “Make in India” even that he’s calling the “biggest brand that India has ever created,” according to a Reuters report.
The event opened this weekend, complete with mascots and thousands of curious individuals wanting to catch a glimpse of India’s bold new push to cement itself as a top world economic power. Modi said it was an attempt to renew a sense of pride in manufacturing in the country.
The event attracted the prime ministers of Sweden and Finland. About 2,500 foreign companies and 8,000 domestic companies are anticipated to be in attendance at the event, which is being held in Indian financial capital Mumbai.
The move comes at a time when India is trying to improve infrastructure in the densely packed nation of 1.3 billion people. India is struggling to keep up with other surging economies, but many key legislative proposals involving taxation and land acquisition remain stuck in parliament, according to the report.
But the “Make in India” event has already seen some important steps forward, with Taiwan’s Foxconn pledging to invest $5 billion in a new facility in the country.
Foreign investment in India has been surging. Last year, direct investment reached $59 billion, double what it was previously. That figure places India at seventh in the world wide, and much closer to the top dogs.
Still, India has a long way to go. Manufacturing has been stagnant the last five years despite government efforts to improve the ratio of manufacturing to gross domestic product from 17 to 25 percent. Just 4 million manufacturing jobs have been created since 2010, and projections indicate it may only create 8 million jobs through by 2022. The goal is 100 million.
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