‘If you miss India, you’ll miss a large chunk of 21st century’: Manuel Muñiz

If companies miss India in terms of investments, they will miss a large chunk of the 21st century, former Secretary of State for Global Spain in the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union (EU) and Cooperation Manuel Muñiz said in an interview. 

Speaking to The Hindu, Mr. Muñiz, who is also the Rector of IE University in Madrid, added that while the India-EU trade deal is expected to double trade, about half of this increase would be in services, which reflects the maturity of the partnership.

The India-EU Free Trade Agreement is well on its way towards implementation, with it expected to be signed in December this year, and implemented in early 2027 once the European Parliament passes it. 

Services to gain as well

“I think it is a strategic deal, it will double trade,” Mr. Muñiz said. “Within that doubling, about half of that trade will be in services, which is excellent because it tells you about the sophistication of the relationship.” 

“And I think the impact on the technology space is going to be very big, because both actors bring very valuable things in the technology and innovation supply chain to the table, and that will now be enhanced by the agreement,” he added.

When asked whether there was a case for European companies to invest in India even though the FTA itself does not contain a chapter dealing with investments, Mr. Muñiz said he thought “there is an immense case to be made for that”. 

“I am of the opinion that, if you miss India, you will miss a large chunk of the 21st century,” he emphasised. “I think India is bound to play a very important role in global economics.”

The reason for this, he explained, was that projections for the next 50 years estimate that the four largest economies by a large margin would be the U.S., China, India, and the European Union.  

“So, I think what we are witnessing with this deal — and what it could bring — is truly strategic if you project it forward,” Mr. Muñiz said.

India-EU tech future

He went on to say that India and the EU have real synergies when it comes to technology. 

“India is clearly very strong on the human-capital component of technology,” Mr. Muñiz said. “A lot of strong STEM profiles are being trained and coming out of India. I think they would benefit from this agreement because they are going to find a larger market in Europe in which to do all sorts of things, and the trade component will also increase.”

He added that there is also a growing ecosystem of entrepreneurship in India that would benefit from having clearer and cleaner access to European markets, which will give these start-ups and others more scalability and easier access to European markets. 

On the European side, he said that the EU offers India several benefits in addition to being one of the largest consumer markets in the world.

“We have a world-class research ecosystem, which, by the way, is built by universities like IE, but also many, many others that are working on technology innovation and transfer,” Mr. Muñiz said. “And we have a lot of regulatory expertise and a large public sector that is also a big consumer of technology and innovation.” 

“I think that might be of interest to Indian technology companies and Indian entrepreneurs,” he added.