With the new Government keen on making the country a global manufacturing hub, India is seeking to engage with Finland, known for its knowledge-based economy and clean technology, official sources said here today ahead of President Pranab Mukherjee’s visit to this key Nordic nation.
“India views Finland as an important member of the European Union and a repository of modern technology and Finland sees in India a large market for its products and a favourable investment destination for its high technology industries,” they said on the eve of Mukherjee’s visit to Finland, the first by an Indian president in 26 years.
“In Finland we also have a reliable trade partner, heavily industrialised in a very green way. We have $1.5 billion of trade and there are over 100 Finnish companies in India which are working here including in R&D,” they said.
India is one of the centres which hosts one of the five global centres of innovation run by Finland known as FinNode.
The main focus areas of FinNode India are clean tech, education and learning, health care and wellbeing, and innovations to base-of-the-pyramid markets.