According to Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, Anupriya Patel, India is likely to export USD 46 billion to ASEAN in financial year 2022.

• India-ASEAN Engineering Partnership Summit was inaugurated on August 23, 2021.
• It was organised by the Engineering Exports Promotion Council (EEPC) in association with the Ministry of External Affairs and Department of Commerce.
• While addressing the inaugural session, the minister noted that, ASEAN is one among the largest destinations for Indian exports and will act as an important region for India in meeting the global export target of USD 400 billion for the financial year 2021-22.
• An E-Book on India-ASEAN trade and investment was also launched that emphasizes on the engineering and MSME sector.
• Year 2021 marks the 25^th anniversary of India-ASEAN dialogue partnership and 10 years of the Strategic Partnership.

India and ASEAN have large share of skilled population, robust service as well as manufacturing sectors. They also have several complementary sectors and products that can help in greater cooperation. Both India and ASEAN have a combined economy of around USD 5.8 trillion. Thus, there is significant potential to enhance trade and investment partnership.

For the fiscal year 2021-22, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a target of USD 400 billion of merchandise exports. He has also envisioned a roadmap to achieve this target. Under the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan, Central government recently approved a USD 26 billion Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme. It covers 13 sectors like pharmaceuticals, electronics, solar modules, automobiles, speciality steel, and medical devices to attract investment and enhance India’s manufacturing capabilities.