An official Indian business delegation led by Suresh Kumar, Joint Secretary (West Asia, North Africa) in the Indian Ministry of External Affairs called on the Tripoli based Libyan Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs & International Cooperation, Taher El Baour in Tripoli Sunday. The delegation is on a 4-day visit to Libya
The Indian Embassy in Libya said the Indian Foreign Minister appreciated intensification of bilateral partnership and suggested ways forward including in healthcare, education, human resource development and digital public infrastructure. He stressed the need to reactivate the institutional mechanism between India and Libya.
Minister Kumar, Joint Secretary (West Asia, North Africa) held a productive meeting in Tripoli yesterday with Salem Alzadma, Deputy Prime Minister, in the Tripoli based government.
The Indian Embassy reported that they reviewed entire range of bilateral relations between India and Libya and agreed to further strengthen and diversify bilateral cooperation in areas of mutual interests.
The Indian delegation also held what the embassy called a productive discussion with the Board of Directors and senior executives of the National Oil Corporation, for enhancing cooperation in the field of energy.
Ministry of Economy and Trade
The Indian Minister and his delegation also met the Tripoli based Libyan Minister of Economy and Trade at the Ministry’s Tripoli headquarters to discuss strengthening economic partnership and investment between the two countries.
The Minister of Economy and Trade held an expanded meeting with Minister Kumar. The meeting was also attended by the Ambassador of the Republic of India to Libya, the Chairman of the General Authority for Communications and Informatics, the Director General of the National Mining Corporation, the President of the Union of Libyan Chambers of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture, and representatives from the Confederation of Indian Industry.
The two sides discussed ways to enhance economic and trade cooperation between Libya and India and expand investment opportunities in several vital sectors, most notably energy, mining, infrastructure, and digital transformation.
The Minister of Economy and Trade emphasized the Tripoli government’s commitment to creating an attractive investment environment, strengthening partnerships with Indian companies, and inviting them to resume and implement their projects in Libya, particularly in the electricity and energy sectors.
He also highlighted the importance of leveraging Indian expertise in digital infrastructure and electronic payment systems to support the digital transformation process and the development of economic services. The meeting also discussed investment opportunities in the mining sector, particularly in iron ore, steel, gypsum, and silica sand, as well as mechanisms to support cooperation between private sector institutions in both countries.
At the conclusion of the meeting, both sides agreed to activate the joint committee and increase the number of training slots allocated to Libya within the Indian Technical Cooperation (ITEC) programme. They also agreed to work towards establishing a joint Libyan-Indian Chamber of Commerce to strengthen partnerships between the private sectors of both countries.
The Libyan Economy Ministry said this meeting comes within the framework of the Ministry of Economy and Trade's efforts to enhance international economic cooperation, attract investments, and expand strategic partnerships in support of sustainable economic development in Libya.