INDIA-USA INVESTMENT INCENTIVE AGREEMENT
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Context
- India and USA signed the Investment Incentive Agreement (IIA) in Tokyo, Japan which is expected to enhance investment support from America’s development finance institution in a wide range of sectors.
About IIA
- The IIA was signed by foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra and Scott Nathan, the chief executive officer of the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC).
- The agreement is considered a legal requirement for DFC to continue providing investment support in India.
- The agreement supersedes another similar pact signed between the governments of India and the US in 1997.
- Cooperation under DFC:
- The proposals worth four billion dollars are under consideration by Corporation for providing investment support in India.
- The Corporation has provided investment support in sectors like COVID-19 vaccine manufacturing, healthcare financing, renewable energy, financial inclusion and infrastructure among others.
- DFC or its predecessor agencies have been active in India since 1974 and have provided investment support worth $5.8 billion, of which $2.9 billion is still outstanding.
India-U.S. Relations
- India-U.S. bilateral relations have developed into a "global strategic partnership", based on shared democratic values and increasing convergence of interests on bilateral, regional and global issues.
- Regular exchange of high-level political visits has provided sustained momentum to bilateral cooperation, while the wide-ranging and ever-expanding dialogue architecture has established a long-term framework for India-U.S. engagement.
- Today, the India-U.S. bilateral cooperation is broad-based and multi-sectoral, covering trade and investment, defence and security, education, science and technology, cyber security, high-technology, civil nuclear energy, space technology and applications, clean energy, environment, agriculture and health.
- Vibrant people-to-people interaction and support across the political spectrum in both countries nurture our bilateral relationship.