As 10th Vibrant Gujarat Summit Inches Close, State Rolls Out Red Carpet To Investors

The core committee meeting, chaired by the chief minister, was attended by Finance Minister Kanu Desai, Health and Technical Education Minister Rushikesh Patel, Industries Minister Balvantsinh Rajput, and Ministers of State, Harsh Sanghvi and Jagdish Vishwakarma.

The first edition of the Vibrant Gujarat Summit was held in 2003, at a time when the focus of catalysing reforms was beginning to shift from the Centre to the states following a decade of economic liberalisation.

Regulations, especially on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), were only gradually relaxed. For example, in the early years of liberalisation, 100 per cent FDI was rarely allowed and majority 51 per cent of equity had to be with an Indian joint venture partner. That was also the time when the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) was the first pit stop for foreign investors. By and large, state governments played second fiddle in FDI attraction.

It was in such a backdrop that Modi became the chief minister of Gujarat in October 2001 and by then state governments like Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh had already taken the lead in hosting large-format conferences intended to attract foreign investors.

Being the country’s second most industrialised state with abundant availability of land for factories and relatively developed infrastructure, it was only a matter of time Gujarat joined the race to directly lure foreign investors.

Year 2003 saw the launch of Vibrant Gujarat Summit in a modest manner with two overseas partners, 125 foreign delegates, 200 NRI business leaders and 200 Indian businesses. It was inaugurated by then Deputy Prime Minister, L.K. Advani. Since then, till the time that Modi became Prime Minister in 2014, six Vibrant Gujarat summits were held and to a large extent, the growing appeal of the summit mirrored the rise of Gujarat, Modi and the BJP on the national stage.

In 2001, Gujarat largely had a national presence in diamonds, petrochemicals and ports. Today, Gujarat’s Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) is estimated at Rs. 22.61 lakh crore (US$ 275.78 billion)in FY23, an increase of 15.5 per cent YoY. In 2022-23, Gujarat contributed 8.6 per cent to India’s GDP.

With a contribution of 65 to 70 per cent to India’s denim production, Gujarat is the largest manufacturer of denim in the country and the third largest in the world. A significant portion of pharmaceutical manufacturing and exports from the country is from the state. There are 42 ports, 17 domestic airports and 3 international airports.

There are 106 product clusters and 60 notified special economic zones (SEZs). Large scale investment is expected in Gujarat as part of the US$ 90 billion Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC). Today, Gujarat ranks fourth among states in terms of FDI received.

“It has been 20 years since the beginning of the Vibrant Gujarat Summit. In these two decades, this initiative has been a trailblazer and trendsetter, “ Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his message intended for the upcoming summit.

Vibrant Gujarat has shown “how a state of India could institutionalise a way to connect Indian and international investors with the aspirations of our youth. It also set a national benchmark which many states successfully emulated, thus strengthening the Indian economy,” Modi said.

Vibrant Gujarat 2024

For the summit which starts in just over two weeks, more than 72,500 delegates and business-industry organisations from 72 countries have registered online.

Bhupendra Patel, along with senior state ministers and officials, conducted visits to 11 countries engaging in 200 one-to-one meetings. Roadshows and more than 106 one-to-one meetings were conducted in 10 cities across the country. There will be 16 partner countries.

A global trade show is scheduled for five days, starting from January 9, a day before the Vibrant Summit begins. The trade show will feature Techade, disruptive technologies, and champion service sectors as its main attractions. Additionally, plans include a reverse buyer-seller meet, vendor development initiatives, and seminars promoting startups, MSMEs, and women entrepreneurs during the trade show.

Following the inaugural session on the first day, the summit seminars will cover topics like Industry 4.0 spearheading the industrial revolution, aircraft ancillary product MRO opportunities, greenfield Smart City for Dholera-Smart Business, Gujarat's roadmap for a Viksit Bharat@2047, and momentum for holistic development.

Aiming to extend the achievements of the Vibrant Gujarat Summit to the district level, a fresh initiative known as Vibrant Gujarat–Vibrant District has been introduced during this year’s Vibrant 2024. It is recognised that each district in the state possesses distinctive potential and strengths, and the government wants to provide them a global platform.

As Chief Minister Patel sums up, “The Tenth Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2024 epitomises our commitment to development and socio-economic growth as envisioned by the Prime Minister. Gujarat is well-positioned to contribute and accelerate the vision of Aatmanirbhar Bharat and Viksit Bharat@2047.”