New Delhi: Australia on Wednesday unveiled a roadmap for deepening its economic engagement with India, with the focus on agribusiness, clean energy and education in order to maximise trade, create jobs and secure supply chains.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese launched the roadmap at an event in Melbourne attended by Indian envoy Gopal Baglay, saying it provides directions for boosting trade and investment with India, which is Australia’s fifth largest trade partner and fourth largest export market for goods and services.
The roadmap listed four “superhighways of growth” – agribusiness, clean energy, education and tourism – with the broader aim of seizing trade and investment opportunities arising from India’s economic rise. It identified almost 50 specific opportunities to accelerate engagement in fields such as defence industries, space, technology and sports.
Describing India as a “giant that continues to grow”, Albanese said the roadmap gives “detailed directions to the greater realisation of the potential” of the bilateral relationship and will help create jobs and growth.
“There is no greater time to engage economically with India than now,” Albanese said. “It [the roadmap] will help secure our supply chains in an uncertain world.”
India and Australia signed the Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) or interim trade deal in 2022 and are negotiating a comprehensive economic cooperation agreement (CECA). Under ECTA, 96% of Indian exports are tariff free, and this will rise to 100% by January 2026. Two-way rose from $22.2 billion in 2021 to $31.4 billion in 2022, growing by 41%. India’s exports to Australia grew by 38% during this period from $6.3 billion to $8.7 billion.
Albanese listed the impacts of ECTA, saying Australia’s agricultural exports to India increased by 146% since 2022, while iron and steel exports rose by 189% between 2022 and 2024. To kick start the roadmap, Australia will invest Australian $16 million for a trade and investment accelerator fund and another Australian $4 million for the Maitri Grants programme to enhance business-to-business links.
An Australian government statement added that ECTA is “on track to save exporters around $2 billion in tariffs by the end of the year”.
“This roadmap is critical to helping us fully realise our potential with India, which will be a boon to Australia’s economy, our businesses and jobs, and our prosperity,” Albanese said.
Australia’s foreign minister Penny Wong welcomed the roadmap, saying it will advance shared interest in a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific. She said both countries need to bolster their defence and diplomatic capabilities in “support of rules and principles that keep us all safe”.
Australia’s trade minister Don Farrell said India will be “absolutely vital” for the future trading prospects of Australia, and the proposed CECA will open up more opportunities in agriculture, critical minerals, space, green hydrogen and hi-tech.
