Toespraak van minister-president Rutte bij Trade dinner in Mumbai

Toespraak | 06-06-2015

Mr Chief Minister, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,

It’s a great pleasure to be here this evening, on my first official trip to India, and my first visit to Mumbai. It’s good to see so many of you here, in the country’s economic capital. With me is the biggest Dutch trade delegation to visit India in recent times. I’m joined by representatives of eighty Dutch businesses, both large and small. They’re led by Hans de Boer, chairman of the largest employers’ association in the Netherlands.

By 'recent times' I mean the last couple of decades. Because back in the early 17th century, many such delegations came to India from the Dutch Republic. In fact, some were even bigger than this one.

Back then Dutch ships roamed the world’s oceans looking for trade. One of their ports of call was in India, where over time they set up a dozen trading posts. In some places, like Madras, those trading stations were active for nearly two centuries. Many traces of that common cultural heritage still remain today.

Going back only 1 century, many modern Dutch firms set up operations here. They've done so well and become so integrated that many locals don’t even know that Philips and Unilever have Dutch roots. They're seen as Indian companies.

That's a good example of how flexible and pragmatic Dutch companies are. They can adjust to local circumstances without risking their core values and skills. And they often show great foresight. Long before Prime Minister Modi called on global investors to 'Make in India', Dutch firms were operating here. Unilever soaps were first produced in Mumbai in 1934, and the first Philips lightbulbs in Kolkata in 1938.

So 'Make in India' is close to our hearts. It played a big role in the discussions I had yesterday in Delhi with Prime Minister Modi and with CEOs of leading Indian and Dutch companies.

Dutch companies are keen to invest more in India. They're also excited about the Modi government's reform programme, with its ambitious goals to transform and modernise the Indian economy.

I told the Prime Minister that the Netherlands is eager to help achieve these goals. We can partner India in a wide range of areas. From helping clean up rivers to setting up agricultural centres of excellence. And offering water management expertise, for example to the state of Maharashtra.

We have great expertise in these fields. Dutch firms work on projects like this all round the world. Like advising the US government after hurricane Katrina and helping the city of New York improve its flood protection. And expanding Hong Kong Airport into the sea, creating islands off the coast of Dubai and protecting the city of Jakarta from rising water levels.

We hope to extend this kind of partnership with India, as well. We have a good foundation – our bilateral economic relations are already strong and wide-ranging. We are major trading partners. Both India and the Netherlands are among the top five foreign investors in each other’s country, and our mutual trade amounts to almost six billion euros.

Our business community feels the excitement of a resurgent, fast-growing India, and wants to be part of that bright future. And more and more successful Indian companies are taking to the global stage. They’re finding the Netherlands an excellent launch pad as a European base. In recent years, over 200 Indian companies have set up operations in the Netherlands. My country hosts one of the largest populations of people of Indian origin in Europe – second only to the UK. We hope that many Indian companies will follow. Because they bring not only new investments and new jobs, but also new knowledge, insights and expertise to our country.

Growing bilateral trade and investment also pay social and cultural dividends. Take the exhibition of beautiful paintings by Lita Cabellut that I opened earlier today. Or the fine initiative we saw this afternoon at the Holland Village, where former Dutch hockey champions are promoting a campaign to restore India to the top of the international hockey rankings. The aim is to recruit a million new young hockey players.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Let me conclude by saying how happy I am to be here at such an exciting time for India. The American writer Mark Twain once said, 'India is the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and the great grandmother of tradition'. India indeed has a rich history, but it also has a very bright future. I’m delighted that the Netherlands can play a part in shaping that future.

Thank you