KOHIMA — Union Minister of State, Ministry of External Affairs, Dr. Rajkumar Ranjan Singh, on Wednesday, said Naga hospitality is ‘legendary’, while exuding hope that the G20 delegates will not only take back beautiful memories but also invest in the state.
He was addressing the B20 Conference on opportunities for multilateral business partnerships in ‘Agriculture and Food Processing, Tourism and Information Technology (IT)’ at State Banquet Hall in Kohima. The event was attended by with 60 delegates from 27 countries.
"It is indeed opportune and well timed that a B20 event is being organised in Kohima; one of the furthest points from India's centre. Yet, Kohima and the Northeast region of India, is central to our connection with our immediate neighbours to our East, be it ASEAN or South Asia," he said.
Singh said the pandemic has forced the people to re-look at the existing global supply chains, and work towards securing supply chains from unforeseen shocks through diversification and re-shoring.
Maintaining that Northeast India is well placed to leverage the opportunity, he said the Prime Minister himself called the Northeast the new engine of growth for India.
The number of airports in the region has jumped from nine to 16 and the number of flights connecting the region has increased from about 900, before 2014, to around 1900 at present, Singh added.
He said many Northeastern states have come under the Indian Railway map for the first time, while pointing out that efforts are being made to expand the waterways as well. He added the length of highways in the region has increased by 50% and air connectivity too has improved significantly since 2014.
[bsa_pro_ad_space id=1]Terming the Northeast as India's gateway to Southeast Asia, he said it will have seamless land connectivity with ASEAN, and beyond, once the India-Myanmar-Thailand trilateral highway is completed, adding that the government is continuously working for land and rail connectivity with Bangladesh too.
He asserted that the Northeast today can be seen as the centre of a potentially dynamic region of the world, surrounded by ASEAN, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and mainland India. He stated that the delegates from the business community should consider this factor, while exploring opportunities in the Northeast region.
Maintaining that youth from the Northeast served as the backbone in the initial heydays of business process outsourcing boom in India, and today play critical roles in hospitality and care-giving sectors across India, he said the region has a rich human resource base.
[bsa_pro_ad_space id=1]"Northeast is front and centre, to our political leadership today. Northeast offers immense and relatively unexplored market opportunities," Singh said while expressing confidence that the Business 20 event in Nagaland will give a unique opportunity to the delegates to know the Northeast, and examine opportunities from close quarters.
He further implored the participants to use the platforms to start a conversation and be the first movers.
Explore state’s potential, says Rio
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio expressed hope that the G20 forum will provide a platform for international economic co-operation and investment.
Rio in his speech said Nagaland, the land of festivals, with its beautiful landscape, vibrant greenery, and the abode of indigenous people with a rich and colourful culture, hopes to find a special place in delegates’ hearts.
Pointing out the need for the world to come together and co-operate, particularly for the economy, he said it is one of the most significant determinants greatly shaping the lives and livelihoods of the people.
He said the G20 forum provides the perfect platform for international economic co-operation for the benefit of all and especially the Northeast region.
He pointed out that the state's economy is mainly centered around agriculture and allied activities, with about 70% of the populace being dependent on these sectors.
‘In one important aspect, it is exceptionally different while the bulk of the agricultural products are organically produced,’ he said, adding that this has been possible as farmers mainly utilise natural manure and traditional practices.
The state also has a much lower population density at 119 persons per square km than the rest of the country, enjoying a very favourable land-man ratio. The tropical and sub-tropical climate in the region is suitable for growth and cultivation of agricultural products, said the chief minister.
He also enlightened the delegates about the Naga chilli - which is the world's hottest naturally-occurring pepper, as well as varieties of tropical fruits and vegetables, especially pineapple, papaya and passion fruit which are highly demanded in markets outside the state.
He informed that more modern cash crops like coffee and tea are also witnessing high quality harvests; 'Naturally Nagaland', a brand and marketing platform, has also been created for the various organically-grown processed foods and other traditional items in the state.
“There exist great investment opportunities in the agriculture and allied sectors of the state and I would urge everyone of you to consider exploring the immense possibilities in this sector,” Rio said.
Tourism
Nagaland, blessed with pristine and beautiful natural environment, almost entirely untouched, and unpolluted, is a tourist’s paradise, he said, adding that the state offers huge potential for tourism industry, especially for those desiring a unique 'out of the box' experience wherein people can explore the jungles and mountains, lush valleys and sparkling streams .He also said it is a haven for trekking and camping, motorsports and off-roading.
‘The fascinating history of the Nagas as head-hunters and fierce warriors, our delightful folklores, and our unique culture, one can get to enjoy a one of its kind tourist experience,’ informed Rio.
Highlighting that Naga society from an entirely tribal way of life has seen rapid transformation to a town-based modem way of life within a very short period of time, he stated that there is ingrained strength and exceptional adaptability of the people that facilitated the smooth adoption of the modern way of life.
Service sector
He underscored that the people have the zeal for learning new skills; coupled with the wide usage of the English language, they have a head start advantage especially in the services sector. Rio said the state has a relatively young work force and a higher literacy rate than the national average.
The chief minister also asserted that among the services sector, in particular, it is well equipped to excel in the IT sector, with the right guidance and building of the infrastructure ecosystem, and pitched to the delegates to consider investing in this sector.
He also highlighted several other sectors including handloom and handicrafts with traditional expertise, sports and youth development, animal husbandry and livestock rearing, medicinal and aromatic plants, higher education, healthcare, and logistics, as the potential areas to invest.
Gateway to South East Asia
Meanwhile, the chief minister also stated that the Northeast region of India is the natural gateway to South East Asia for the country, and Nagaland lies along this strategic route.
Maintaining that India has enjoyed historical ties with nations of South East Asia for centuries through trade and cultural exchanges through the sea route, the land route through the Nagaland for business and trade is thus a natural extension to this path, Rio said.
During the past, the state was considered closed to the rest of the country and the world due to its relative remoteness and backwardness, as well as its political history, he said. But over the past two decades it has opened up to the world, and it now offers huge untapped potential in several areas of trade and services to the outside world.
Yet, he maintained that due to the lack of industrialisation in the past, there are large unexploited and unexplored natural resources available in the state that provides tremendous opportunities especially for those who come early.
He assured that the state is fully geared up to put in place all the requisite systems and the enabling policy frameworks for ensuring a robust exchange of investment and business opportunities and facilitating a rapid and sustained industrial development in the state.
Further, he vouched that the state will ensure the creation of an investor-friendly environment, provision of infrastructure and institutional support, attractive incentive packages and optimum utilisation of existing resources in order to gainfully utilise/tap emerging opportunities in the national and international markets.
Rupa Dutta, Principal Economic Advisor, Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIT), Government of India, meanwhile, highlighted the initiatives undertaken by the government and also underscored the opportunities and potentials that the state got to offer the investors.
India's G20 presidency great opportunity for Nagaland
Chief Secretary J Alam in his speech said India's presidency is a great opportunity for the country and especially for the state and the Northeast region, while extending gratitude to the Government of India for giving the opportunity to host the business summit in Kohima.
He maintained that Nagaland is the second oldest state in the Northeast, strategically located between the great river systems of Brahmaputra and Chindwin/Irrawaddy bordering the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Manipur and sharing a long international border with Myanmar in the East.
Pointing out that Nagaland is predominantly an agrarian state with two third of the population being dependent on agri-related activities, he said food grains production has increased substantially over the last few decades and it stood at more than 700,000 metric tonnes in 2022-2023.
He also said the government is focusing on leveraging its agricultural crops into opportunities for the food processing sector and have, over the years, developed various indigenous brands such as Naga Organic, Nagaland Coffee, Naturally Nagaland, Mongken and Myki etc. with strong connection to the grassroots, and is targeted at taking the local products beyond the state borders while generating income and livelihood for the people.
The chief secretary asserted that Nagaland is richly endowed with mineral resources with hydrocarbon, coal and limestone and various other mineral deposits. Most of these resources remain untapped due to insufficient investment in mining and related infrastructure.
He maintained that Nagaland is rapidly upgrading in physical infrastructure while it is building better roads to connect all parts of the state besides the connectivity of rail to the state capital of Kohima, and development of new network of small air strips and heliports in various important towns.
He said Nagaland, being a small state, has a business-friendly government set up where investors have easy access to top echelons of the government and administration that helps in quick resolution of the issues that investors might face, while adding that no amount of ease-of-doing-business can replace the comfort and reassurance that such easy access provides.
Further, he exuded hope that the meet is an opportunity for Nagaland to show to the world the vast potential it has in the agriculture and food processing, tourism and infrastructure sector, which would foster a stronger people-to-people global relations, and strengthen local-to-global economy by connecting Made in Nagaland goods and services into the international market and Global Value Chain.
Earlier, welcome address was delivered by Pradeep Bagla, Chairman Confederation of Indian Industry, North East Council and later vote of thanks was proposed by Mhathung Yanthan, Advisor of Agriculture.