Aruban delegation in India

The visit of the Aruban Prime Minister that we helped initiate is taking place in Delhi and Bombay. The first articles have appeared in the Indian media. Newspapers such as Economic Times, the largest business newspaper in India, and the web based news sites have carried stories about the visit and what Aruba has to offer Indian businesses.

Aruba offers Indian cos easier access to US, EU

(PTI 10/12/2007) NEW DELHI - Aruba, an island in the Caribbean sea with access to the European Union and US markets, today said it could act as a logistics centre for Indian companies looking to tap those regions.

"We want to make Aruba a logistics centre for the Indian companies. We have the necessary infrastructure and an agreement for duty free movement of goods to the US and the EU markets," Aruba's Prime Minister Nelson Oduber told reporters here.

Citing an example, he said Aruba imports sugar and ethanol from Brazil, adds value to the products and moves them duty free to the US and the EU.

"We are in contact with many Indian companies from the sectors of infrastructure, energy, pharmaceutical, information technology and aviation," he revealed but refused to divulge their names.

Oduber said he would meet businessmen from the aviation industry tomorrow in Mumbai.

The Prime Minister invited corporate India to set up shop in the country's upcoming Free Zone. "If you register in the Free Zone, you would be liable to pay only two per cent tax on profits and zero import duty," he said.

Also, the country is expected to float an open tender next year for exploring its natural resources such as oil and gas, in which it is expecting the Indian industry to participate.