2011: the promising year of India in Canada

The year 2011 has been dubbed the “year of India in Canada” by the Indian and Canadian governments. While the main focus may be on the International Indian Film Academy Awards and Pravasi Bharatiya Divas to be hosted in Toronto in June, numerous recent events have set the stage for 2011 to be a banner year for economic and business relations between the two countries.

For the first time in 37 years the prime ministers of India and Canada visited each other’s countries in 2009 and 2010. The focus of their meeting in 2010, held under the backdrop of the G20 summit in Canada, was strengthening economic ties between the two countries. This was followed in September 2010 by the release of a joint study that recommended moving ahead with negotiating a comprehensive free trade agreement.

Trade between the two countries currently stands at around only C$5 billion (US$5.04 billion). But with free trade talks underway, the opportunity for trade and investment, especially in the resource sector, has increased.

Raj Sahni is a partner at Bennett Jones LLP and co-chair of its India practice. The firm has expertise in energy, oil and gas and natural resources, and more than 400 lawyers and advisors in Canada and Dubai.