Princess Astrid’s Visit Strengthens India-Belgium Economic and Bilateral Ties
Princess Astrid of Belgium led a high-level Economic Mission to India from March 1 to 8, 2025, accompanied by key government officials and over 325 Belgian business leaders and academic representatives.
The visit focused on enhancing trade, fostering innovation, and boosting investment across multiple sectors.
This was the second Economic Mission to India led by Princess Astrid. She was joined by Maxime Prevot, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs; Theo Francken, Minister of Defence, in charge of Foreign Trade; and Matthias Diependale, Minister-President of Flanders, along with a diverse delegation of Belgian CEOs, academics, and senior officials.
During the visit, Princess Astrid met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss strengthening economic ties and exploring new avenues of cooperation in high-impact sectors.
External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar also held detailed discussions with the delegation, covering areas such as digital technology, semiconductors, defence, clean energy, and the mobility of skilled professionals
Princess Astrid further engaged with key ministers, including Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, and Electronics and IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. In Mumbai, she met with Maharashtra Governor C. P. Radhakrishnan and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to discuss state-level collaborations.
A highlight of the visit was the delegation’s tour of the Agristo-Masa potato processing facility in Bijnor, Uttar Pradesh. Agristo announced plans to expand operations in India with an additional investment of INR 750 crores.
The Economic Mission resulted in the signing of over 35 business and academic agreements across diverse sectors.
Several B2B meetings and seminars were held on topics including water management, women entrepreneurship, defence ties, sustainable infrastructure, astronomy, healthcare, education, green hydrogen, and logistics.
India and Belgium share robust economic relations, with bilateral trade exceeding USD 15 billion in 2023-24, making Belgium India’s 5th largest trading partner in the European Union. With over 175 Belgian companies operating in India and cumulative investments of USD 4 billion, this Economic Mission is expected to drive further collaboration and trade diversification.
***********************************************************
Readers
These are extraordinary times. All of us have to rely on high-impact, trustworthy journalism. And this is especially true of the Indian Diaspora. Members of the Indian community overseas cannot be fed with inaccurate news.
Pravasi Samwad is a venture that has no shareholders. It is the result of an impassioned initiative of a handful of Indian journalists spread around the world. We have taken a small step forward with the pledge to provide news with accuracy, free from political and commercial influence. Our aim is to keep you, our readers, informed about developments at ‘home’ and across the world that affect you.
Please help us to keep our journalism independent and free.
In these difficult times, running a news website requires finances. While every contribution, big or small, will make a difference, we request our readers to put us in touch with advertisers worldwide. It will be a great help.
For more information: pravasisamwad00@gmail.com
