PORT LOUIS, Mauritius (CU)_The Confederation of West Bengal Trade Associations (CWBTA), the eastern region’s premier trade body, has appreciated the India-Mauritius free trade agreement. India and Mauritius signed a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA) on Tuesday, marking India’s first trade agreement with an African nation.
The CECPA was signed in Port Louis on Monday by, the Commerce Secretary Anup Wadhawan and Ambassador Haymandoyal Dillum, Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration, and International Trade, Government of Mauritius, in the presence of Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth and S Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister of India. The agreement’s reach is limited, involving areas such as trade in goods, rules of origin, trade in services, technological barriers to trade, sanitary and phytosanitary steps, dispute resolution, natural person movement, telecommunications, financial services, customs procedures, and other areas of cooperation.
Sushil Poddar, CWBTA president, stated, “The India-Mauritius Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA) signed on Monday is a milestone. Over 300 domestic goods from agriculture, textiles, electronics and other sectors will get market access to the African nation at concessional rates. It is a gateway to the African continent and would greatly enhance India’s trade and export footprint. CWBTA welcomes this initiative by the Indian government.”
Within two years of signing the agreement, both parties have agreed to discuss an Automatic Trigger Safeguard Mechanism (ATSM) for a selected number of highly sensitive items. According to a press release, the deal will come into effect as early as possible.
On February 27, 2021, the premier trade body will host the ‘CWBTA Trade Excellence Award 2021′ in Kolkata. The members of leading trade and commerce organisations, industrialists, trading houses, and the diplomatic corps will take part in the event. The ‘Trade Excellence Award 2021′ will recognize individuals who succeed in 14 different fields of trade and commerce.
