The 5th ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) Joint Committee and related meetings for the review of the AITIGA were held at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta, Indonesia, from July 29 to August 1, 2024. This event marked a significant milestone in enhancing economic cooperation between ASEAN and India.

During the 3rd round of negotiations in Jakarta, all eight sub-committees dealing with various aspects of the agreement—‘national treatment and market access’, ‘rules of origin’, ‘standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures’, ‘sanitary and phytosanitary’, ‘legal and institutional issues’, ‘customs procedures and trade facilitation’, ‘trade remedies’ and ‘economic and technical cooperation’—met alongside the 5th AITIGA JC and held substantive discussions. Significant progress was made during this round, with all sub-committees reporting their discussion outcomes to the 5th AITIGA JC, which provided further guidance to steer their future work.

The meeting was co-chaired by Rajesh Agrawal, additional secretary, Department of Commerce, India, and Mastura Ahmad Mustafa, deputy secretary general (Trade), Ministry of Investment, Trade & Industry, Malaysia. Delegates from all 10 ASEAN countries and India participated in the meeting, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a press release.

On the sidelines of the 5th AITIGA JC meeting, the Indian delegation, led by Rajesh Agrawal, held bilateral meetings with counterparts from Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, and Vietnam to develop a common understanding of the issues being discussed in the AITIGA review. Separate meetings were also held with ASEAN Secretary General Dr Kao Kim Hourn and ASEAN deputy secretary general Satvinder Singh to explore possibilities for enhancing economic cooperation between India and ASEAN through the review of AITIGA.

The Indian delegation also interacted with Indian businesses in Jakarta on July 31, 2024, at a dinner arranged by the Embassy of India in Jakarta, where they listened to the experiences of the industry and their expectations from the AITIGA review.

ASEAN is an important trade partner for India, with about 11 per cent share in India’s global trade. The review of AITIGA, which was originally signed in 2009, aims to create further opportunities for businesses on both sides to enhance the level of India-ASEAN trade. The next meeting of the AITIGA Joint Committee will be held in India from November 19-22, 2024.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP)