Government sets up 'Japan Plus' team

India has set up a ‘Japan Plus’ management team to follow through on the $35 bn that Japan has promised to invest in India over a span of five years via PPP and overseas development assistance. This is a follow through on the agreements and initiatives agreed to by India and Japan during PM Modi’s visit to Japan.
Japan is the fourth largest foreign investor in India. It contributes to approximately 8% of India’s total FDI inflows. It is already actively involved in various infrastructure projects in India.

 Responsibilities of the Japan Plus team

The team will provide the Indian government assistance with respect to initiating, attracting, facilitating and fast-tracking of Japanese investments in India. The team will be responsible for all areas of investment promotion, research, outreach and issues post investment. It will also help identify areas for Indo-Japan collaboration and viable projects for Japanese investment.

 Composition

The team has been set up by DIPP (Department Of Industrial Policy and Promotion) and is operational from October 8. It consists of government officials from both countries. The team will have four Indians and two Japanese, and will be coordinated by Kenichiro Toyofuku from Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

 India-Japan Investment Promotion Partnership

An  Indo-Japan Investment Promotion Partnership core group has also been constituted. It will be headed by the Cabinet Secretary and will comprise of the Chairman of Railway Board, Foreign Secretary and secretaries of DIPP, revenue, economic affairs, financial services, urban development, information technology and others. It will coordinate and monitor investments from Japan. Also, it will facilitate investment in various sectors and enable effective transfer of technologies .

Month: Current Affairs - October, 2014