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Canada-India joint initiatives and agreements

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Today, Canada announced a wide range of new initiatives and agreements with India that span education, security, sustainable development, trade and investment, and women’s health and empowerment. Increased cooperation in these priority areas will help grow Canada’s economy and strengthen our middle class.

Growth and Prosperity

Canada-India Dialogue on Innovation, Growth, and Prosperity: Canada and India announced the Canada-India Dialogue on Innovation, Growth, and Prosperity, a collaboration between Canada’s Centre for International Governance Innovation and India’s Gateway House. This dialogue will convene subject experts, government officials, and business leaders to promote bilateral economic growth and innovation in today’s digital economy.

Intellectual property: The Canadian Intellectual Property Office and India’s Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion agreed to strengthen their bilateral relationship and are finalizing a Memorandum of Understanding. 

Audiovisual co-production agreement: Canada and India commit to further engagement and collaboration to encourage partnerships on film, television, and video projects under the Audiovisual Co-production Agreement.

Higher Education: Canada and India renewed a Memorandum of Understanding on Higher Education and announced that Canada will host the biannual Joint Working Group on Higher Education later in 2018.

50th Anniversary of Academic Cooperation with the Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute: Canada announced a $200,000 contribution to mark the 50th anniversary of the Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute’s collaboration between Canada and India.

Promotion of innovative research: Recognizing the importance of innovation, Canada and India welcomed a call for research proposals amounting to $4 million toward cleaning polluted bodies of water and mitigating fire hazards in buildings. Key partners in this initiative are the India-Canada Centre for Innovative Multidisciplinary Partnerships to Accelerate Community Transformation and Sustainability, India’s Department of Biotechnology, and India’s Department of Science and Technology.

Supporting entrepreneurship: Understanding the importance of commercializing technology and supporting entrepreneurs, Canada and India announced a commitment to connect innovation and entrepreneur hubs. This is an initiative of Mitacs, a Canadian national not-for-profit research and training organization, and India’s Department of Science and Technology.

Research collaboration on agriculture and the environment: The Government of India and Canada’s International Development Research Centre agreed to continue their support of important research in India to address current and future global development challenges in areas including agriculture and environment, inclusive economies, technology, and innovation.

Investment attraction cooperation:Canada and India finalized a Memorandum of Understanding between the Global Affairs Canada’s Investment and Innovation Bureau and Invest India which will enhance two way investment between Canada and India.

Information and communications: Canada and India committed to continued cooperation in the Information and Communications Technologies and Electronics sector, including collaboration on Canada’s Innovation and Skills Plan and the Digital India program. Canada and India agreed to engage policy makers, associations, business leaders, and academics in efforts to support the growth of the innovation ecosystems in both countries.

Women’s empowerment and health

Investing in research and knowledge to empower Indian women: Canada’s International Development Research Centre is supporting action research into the most effective ways to empower women, prevent gender-based violence, and make digital platforms work for inclusive development in India. New investments in 2018 will improve the working conditions of homeworkers and seek to improve business practices in global supply chains.

Innovations to promote women’s health and empowerment: Canada announced $7.9 million in funding for forty Grand Challenges Canada projects in India to support women’s empowerment, sexual and reproductive health and rights, water and sanitation, and mental health.

Nutrition International: Canada and India welcomed the Asia launch of Nutrition International’s “She’ll Grow Into It” campaign and highlighted Canada’s contribution of $11.5 million to the Right Start Initiative in India, which works to empower the world’s poorest women, adolescent girls, and children.

Promoting the participation of women in science: Canada and India announced collaboration between Canada’s Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council and India’s Department of Science and Technology to jointly promote and strengthen the participation of girls and women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

Cooperation in sport: Canada and India signed the Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in Sport to address critical ongoing and emerging issues that reduce public confidence in sports and undermine its health, development, cultural, and social benefits.

Healthy Life Trajectories Initiative: The Canadian Institutes of Health Research and India’s Department of Biotechnology are working with the World Health Organization to reduce chronic diseases. The joint $5 million investment in this initiative will support research designed to give children in India the healthiest start to life.

Sustainable Development

Expanding scope of the Canada-India Ministerial Energy Dialogue and 2018 Energy Dialogue Meeting: The Canada-India Ministerial Energy Dialogue is the primary mechanism for advancing cooperation on energy issues between the two governments. The leaders agreed to expand its scope beyond oil and gas and increase the focus on clean energy cooperation in areas such as electricity, renewable energy and energy efficiency. Canada will host the 4th Ministerial Energy Dialogue in 2018, which will allow the two countries to increase their cooperation on sustainable energy and provide the opportunity to establish an Action Plan on shared priorities.

Supporting adaptation to climate change through evidence and innovation:  Canada’s International Development Research Centre is investing in local solutions to problems in India including heat stress, water management, and climate-related migration. Starting in 2018, the Centre will support the development of a new university program in water science and policy, as well as provide new fellowships to emerging women leaders in India.

Progress on enhanced geospatial and remote sensing collaboration: Canada and India agreed to extend an implementing arrangement promoting further cooperation on issues such as landslide monitoring and expanded scientific exchanges. Discussions are underway to enhance geospatial, remote sensing, and other research collaboration.

Supporting research to address current and future global developmental challenges: Canada’s International Development Research Centre and the Government of India signed a Memorandum of Understanding that will enable Canada to continue supporting important research in India addressing current and future global development challenges in areas including agriculture and environment, inclusive economies, and technology and innovation.

Civil nuclear science, technology, and innovation: Natural Resources Canada and the Department of Atomic Energy have concluded a memorandum of understanding on civil nuclear science, technology, and innovation. The agreement builds on the desire to further strengthen co-operation in science, technology and innovation to mutual benefit through the promotion of research and scientific exchanges between scientists, researchers and technical experts. 

Security

Counter-terrorism: In order to strengthen the fight against terrorism, Canada and India concluded a Framework for Cooperation on Countering Terrorism and Violent Extremism. This Framework focuses on practical measures for enhancing cooperation related to intelligence techniques and the prevention and investigation of terrorism.

Peacekeeping Collaboration: Mindful of the significant contribution that India is making to the United Nations’ current peacekeeping operations and recognizing the interest that Canada and India share in efforts to ensure that UN peacekeeping operations continue to offer an effective multilateral response to global peace and security challenges, Canada and India agreed to explore new forms of collaboration in the area of peacekeeping training and to advance the role that women play in peacekeeping operations.

Bilateral relationship

Consular cooperation: Canada and India recognize that strengthening people-to-people ties requires the support of modern, responsive consular services. To ensure the highest quality services to Canadians and Indians, senior officials from both countries will meet to discuss consular topics of mutual interest.

National Security Advisors Dialogue: The National Security Advisors for Canada and India agreed to expand cooperation on counter-terrorism files, and regional and global security.

Research collaboration: Canada and India announced new cooperation between leading independent think tanks. The Macdonald-Laurier Institute of Ottawa and its counterpart in New Delhi, the Observer Research Foundation, will work together to generate new ideas on key strategic issues toward mutual prosperity and security.

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