Hyderabad a model city for drawing investment: US envoy Kenneth Juster

Hyderabad: Hyderabad is a model city in terms of drawing investment from the US, given that the city is a hub for American IT (information technology) companies, said US ambassador to India Kenneth Juster on Monday. He added India is a strategic partner for the US in the Asia-Pacific region, and that economic relationships are as important as security ties.

“This is the most dynamic part of the world as a large part of the world’s economic growth is here. It is also critical for international relations for prosperity and freedom of trade,” said Juster, on the importance of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES), which begins in Hyderabad on Tuesday.

Addressing a press conference on Monday, Juster stated that credit rating company Moody’s Investors Service raising India’s sovereign rating from the lowest investment grade of Baa3 to Baa2, and changing the outlook to stable from positive was a compliment to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

When asked how much investment the three-day (28-30 November) GES is expected to generate, NITI Aayog chief executive Amitabh Kant said this is not an investors’ meet. “We are trying to create an ecosystem for disruption (of technology through innovation) start-ups and to bring entrepreneurs together. The objective is to drive innovation,” he added during the press conference, which he attended along with Juster and S.P. Singh, chief secretary of the Telangana government.

Answering a question on H-1B visa restrictions, Juster said that the US government is currently reviewing its worldwide visa policies and refused to comment further on it. “I don’t think that the H-1B visa policy will contradict business plans,” he mentioned.

Juster also said that India was selected by the US government to host the GES last year by former US President Barack Obama’s administration and that countries are chosen with regard to growing opportunities for women and creation of jobs. “We want to give importance to that and highlight how women play a greater role,” said the US ambassador.

On why Hyderabad was chosen, Kant said the PM was very keen that events should move out (of the capital) and that the city was shortlisted after five states had applied for it. The event will have 1,500 delegates from 150 countries participating in it.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the event in the evening, following which Ivanka Trump, adviser to the US President, will participate in a panel session on “opening up opportunities for women entrepreneurs in their countries and communities”.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.