Wales in India 2024 is an initiative that will encompass a range of activities to celebrate Welsh and Indian traditions with exhibitions, performances, and collaborative projects to highlight the rich and diverse cultures of both nations. The First Minister of Wales, Sir Mark Drakeford, formally celebrated the launch of the year-long partnership drive at a special event at India House in London last week.
Sir Mark said: “We are so well served in Wales by a rich Indian community, who we are lucky enough to have attracted to come and make their futures part of our future; and who every single day contribute to the richness of our society and help us together to craft that confident, outward-looking Wales.
“The contribution which our friends and colleagues from the Indian community make in Wales is extraordinary to us in that fundamental endeavour. Wales else lives cheek by jowl with a much larger country and a language that is a globally dominant language. We understand what it is to have to work to keep your identity and when we welcome people from other parts of the world to bring their culture with them, bring that powerful sense of attachment to what has made them what they are today, we recognise that in ourselves.”
Wales in India festivities kicked off earlier this year with the Welsh Language Children’s Laureate Nia Morais addressing the Kolkata Literature Festival 2024 and will lead up to an Indo-Welsh Conclave in the coming months.
Indian High Commissioner to the UK Vikram Doraiswami said: “We are determined as partners to actually be part of the journey to help you with events that you do in India and be part of your events in Wales as well.
“Our idea is that we celebrate this partnership as an opportunity to showcase what we can do for each other and what Wales can benefit from the rise of the Indian economy, and how India can benefit from Wales.
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“Welsh businesses can sell everything Wales makes from wool to whisky and everything in between. Put it this way: India imported around 219 million bottles of UK whisky in 2022. But that was only 2 per cent of our consumption, so to put it mildly there's room to expand… But it isn't just about business. It's also about people. The Welsh have been hugely hospitable hosts to an Indian community in all its colour and all its dimensions.”
During a panel discussion of sectoral experts, some of the key areas of cooperation between India and Wales were spotlighted as technology, ranging from semiconductors to cyber security, aviation and opportunities to scale up in areas such as pharmaceuticals in line with the success of Indian firm Wockhardt, which has a strong manufacturing presence in Wrexham.