Chief Minister Eknath Shinde reinforces Maharashtra’s trillion-dollar economy trajectory at World Economic Forum 2024
The Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Shri Eknath Shinde, concluded his remarkably successful visit to the World Economic Forum 2024 (WEF) in Davos, signing MoUs aimed at attracting substantial investments into the state. During his visit, Shri Shinde, was accompanied by Minister of Industries, Shri Uday Samant, and signed 19 MoUs across sectors and laid the groundwork to propel Maharashtra into phase of rapid growth to achieve its trillion dollar aspiration. This trip builds on the successes from WEF Annual General meet in 2023 and continues to show the global belief that Magnetic Maharashtra is the stable and dependable gateway to India.
Presenting Maharashtra as the premier investment hub under the theme “Bringing Confidence during a changing World” Shri Shinde successfully concluded number of meetings with global political leaders, industry leaders, and decision-makers, and formalised MOUs worth INR 3,53,675 crores (appox. $44.2 billion) and received an expression of interest for an additional INR 1 lakh crore (~12.5 bn) investment, attracting a total investment of 4.5 lakh crore (~USD 56.7 billion) all having significant FDI component, with a potential to create about 2 lakh jobs in various sectors including Electronics, IT/ITeS, Data Centers, Gems & Jewellery, Agriculture, Auto and Renewables.
The Chief Minister participated in a Multilateral Meeting on Place-based Innovation for Growth, Sustainability, and Shared Prosperity, which was a roundtable discussion held during the WEF congress session. In the session, the Chief Minister emphasized the importance of place-based innovation for a prosperous, sustainable, and equitable future. Based on the various successes from across Maharashtra, he also discussed the potential of place-based innovations as an inclusive solution to global challenges and shared his ideas on steps that can be taken to amplify this potential. The roundtable also featured prominent speakers from different countries and top executives from leading companies like Deloitte, Salesforce, and Citigroup.
These strategic investments and expansion plans are poised to significantly boost the state’s economic landscape. They include setting up a green hydrogen and ammonia plant by Inox Air Product, battery separator film manufacturing facility by BC Jindal, paper production capacity expansion by a global Natural Resource Conglomerate, brewery business expansion by ABInBev, Dighi Port expansion by Adani Group, JSW Steel in renewables, Godrej Agrovet’s investment in cattle feed expansion and chemical segments, CtrlS Data centers setting up solar parks, Web Werks investment in IT/ITES Data Center and Hyundai Motor expansion plans.
Concluding his visit, Shri Shinde said, “My visit to the World Economic Forum proved highly productive. The diverse investments across sectors reaffirm Maharashtra’s unique position as India’s gateway. I am resolute in leading the state’s initiatives to achieve our ambitious $1 trillion GDP goal. The future holds promise, and I am enthusiastic about propelling Maharashtra’s ongoing success on the global stage which is only possible because of the amazing and talented people in Maharashtra.”
MoU’s were also signed with India Jewellery Park Mumbai (IJPM) for a gems and jewellery park, expansion by Indospace Logistics and ALU TECH. Steel companies including Llyod Metals, Surjagarh Ispat, Kalika Steel, Arcelor Mittal and Million Steels Pvt Ltd also signed MoU’s for significant investments in the state. Swiss India Chamber of Commerce (SICC) & a 8 company Swiss Delegation also signed a MoU for exploring investment in multiple sectors. These ventures collectively represent a substantial infusion of capital and development, fostering economic growth and employment opportunities in Maharashtra. This is also indicative of Maharashtra’s close bilateral relationship with the Swiss investment corridor and business community.
During his visit, Shri Shinde also met heads of state for collaborative discussions and partnerships aimed at fostering international cooperation and strengthening diplomatic ties for mutual socio-economic advancement. Shri Shinde held meetings with Chairman, DP World, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Prince of Liechtenstein, Oman Minister for Industries- HE Qais Mohammed Al Yousefi, Minister of Economy UAE- Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri and Kim Dong Yeon, the Governor of Gyeonggi Province of South Korea.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) is a strong forum for mobilizing and concretizing international sentiment and converting it into tangible investments. The recent investment intentions secured by the Government of Maharashtra at the WEF is staggering and a first of its kind for any state from India in any WEF Annual General Meet(AGM). This achievement is a testament to the state’s brand of trust and business acumen, and it’s exciting to see what the future holds for Maharashtra.