Business needs to create wealth, FDI alone not the answer: Amitabh Kant
New Delhi: Indian industries need to play the role of wealth creators in the economy as India cannot rely alone on foreign direct investment (FDI) for growth, NITI Aayog Chief Executive Officer Amitabh Kant said on April 4.
"The domestic industry needs to play the role of wealth creators in the economy and India cannot rely on FDI alone. Also, there is need to focus on export promotion," Kant said during an event on 'Global Slowdown-Implications of the World's fastest Growing Economy' at CII Annul Session 2016on April 4. On ease of doing business, Kant said the notion that India is a very complex place to do business is changing.
"The mindset of the bureaucracy is changing and the focus has now shifted to outcome-based implementation of policies," he said.
Speaking on the occasion, Bharti Enterprises Chairman and CII former president Sunil Mittal said the present global situation is "a crisis of sorts" and India needs to take advantage of this crisis.
"The Indian government is undertaking reforms to make India more competitive globally," he said. He is of the view that while these reforms will take time to make a real impact, Indian industry must take advantage of the situation and step up investment.
The NITI Aayog CEO spoke about the challenge of sustaining growth rate at 9-10 per cent over the next three decades to eradicate poverty. There is a need to "focus on disruptive technology" to promote this growth.
"By 2020, India will have 1 billion smartphone users. We should use that to be the biggest disruptor. There are huge amounts of vibrancy and creativity among young entrepreneurs and start-ups," Kant said.
Underlining the importance of role of women in India's growth, Kant added: "Women should contribute 40 per cent of GDP. Presently, it is 17 per cent."
He singled out urbanisation as a key driver of economic growth and laid a premium on promoting Total Factor Productivity (TFP) in India to boost growth. The TFP level is determined by how efficiently and intensely inputs are utilised towards production.
