India, Brazil agree to promote greater business interaction

New Delhi, Mar 30 (ANI): Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on Friday said that India and Brazil have agreed to take measures to promote greater bilateral business interaction.

In a statement made during the state visit of Brazil President Dilma Rousseff, Dr. Singh said: "India and Brazil represent diverse, multi-ethnic, vibrant democracies. We are both committed to creating an international order that facilitates our efforts at poverty eradication and social development. Bilateral trade and investment flows have grown by leaps and bounds. Yet, President Rousseff and I are in full agreement that these can be enhanced even further. We agreed to take measures to promote greater business interaction."

"Our two countries face similar challenges in promoting inclusive growth. Brazil has been successfully implementing various social welfare programmes that hold relevance for India's situation as well. We agreed to exchange experiences in this field," he added.

Asserting that both India and Brazil share common perspectives on environmental issues, Dr Singh said: " Our bilateral strategic partnership has strengthened and deepened enormously. President Rousseff and I have undertaken a comprehensive review of our relations, including the work of the inter-governmental joint commission meeting which met last December in New Delhi."

"We directed our officials to take specific steps to exploit the full potential in areas such as trade, education, science and technology, environment, defence, space and nuclear energy," he added.

On India, Brazil, South Africa (IBSA), Dr. Singh said: "We also agreed on the importance of IBSA and noted our cooperation in third countries through the IBSA process. President Rousseff and I exchanged views on various global developments. Our perspectives are marked by a high degree of convergence."

Praising President Rousseff, Dr. Singh said: "President Rousseff is a pioneer in many fields. She is the first Brazilian woman to be elected to the office of president of her country. Her personal zeal and commitment to democracy, human rights and upliftment of the downtrodden are well known."

"I have conveyed to her our deep admiration of her work and her achievements. I congratulated her on receiving an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Delhi," he added. (ANI)