RIYADH: India seeks to improve its long-standing trade ties with Saudi Arabia, with its embassy in the Kingdom aiming to bolster cooperation with the Council of the Federation of Saudi Chambers.  

To this end, a meeting was held at the Qassim Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s headquarters in Buraidah. It was attended by Muhammad Al-Hanaya, secretary-general of the chamber, and Suhel Ajaz Khan, Indian ambassador to Saudi Arabia, according to Al-Ekhbariya.  

The envoy said the volume of trade and partnership between India and the Kingdom as well as the promising and sustainable investment opportunities reflect the depth of bilateral relations and confirm the importance of shared visions on many global issues.  

He expressed hope that the private sectors of the two countries will be able to conduct more cross-border trade and that the modernization and development of the chambers and commercial committees will continue.  

On Friday, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology signed a cooperation agreement on digitization and electronic manufacturing with India.  

The agreement was signed by Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah Al-Swaha and his Indian counterpart Ashwini Vaishnaw.

 The agreement seeks to strengthen Saudi Arabia and India’s partnership in digital research and innovation as well as the use of new technologies.  

It also aims to increase cooperation in the areas of e-health, e-learning, and digital infrastructure, according to the Saudi Press Agency.  

Saudi Arabia hopes to strengthen its position as a regional center for innovation and technology as well as an attractive destination for foreign investment.  

The agreement will also work to develop strategic alliances that support the Kingdom’s objectives in this area and innovation as well as the expansion of the digital economy.  

In January, the Kingdom held talks with Sweden to develop a joint economic action plan for 2023 to bolster trade and investment relations between the two countries.  

The discussions between Hussein Al-Abdulkader, the secretary-general of the Federation of Saudi Chambers, and Petra Menander, the Swedish ambassador to the Kingdom, highlighted prospects for trade and investment relations and advancing the path of cooperation between the business sectors in both countries.