India has committed investments worth $2.6 billion to Myanmar, the government said in a statement on Friday. Union Minister of Commerce, Industry & Textiles Anand Sharma met U Myat Hein, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Myanmar, in Nay Pyi Taw. “We will see an investment of around $2.6 billion from India to Myanmar” in the next few years, Sharma said. Both ministers discussed co-operation in in oil and gas exploration, infrastructure, information technology, pharmaceutical, manufacturing and education and skill development.
Both ministers also held talks on the selection process for telecom companies which is underway in Myanmar. Myanmar assured fair bidding process for telecom contracts. India is the tenth largest investor in Myanmar with investments worth at $273.5 million.
Sharma also met Jon Fredrik Baksaas, President and CEO, Telenor Group. Telenor expressed its commitment to stay engaged in India and better its presence in India.
Baksaas conveyed his appreciation for the government’s intervention to work out a solution for the protection of the investment of the telecom companies, the government said in the statement.
“This has been reassuring for Telenor and other investors,” Baksaas was quoted as telling Sharma who assured him that the pending matters on their investment would be expedited.
India and Myanmar set a bilateral trade target of $3 billion by 2015.
In 2011, bilateral trade stood at $1.708 billion while it was $ 1.872 billion in 2012. India is the fourth largest trading partner of Myanmar after Thailand, Singapore and China.