This year’s annual general meeting (AGM) took place at DNB Bjørvika on August 26 at 3pm. NICCI were fortunate to have so many talented speakers addressing our members and stakeholders.
Written by: Marina Didriksen.
Our host of the evening Group Executive Vice President IT & Operations DNB, Liv Fiksdahl, opened the meeting by welcoming all of the attendants.
DOWNLOAD THE ANNUAL REPORT HERE (PDF)
Our Chairperson and CEO, Rina Sunder, Rina Sunder also made some good points talking about, the next, Norway after the oil:
Obviously, the next is India as this century belongs to Asia. With the 3 D`s, Democracy, Demography and Demand India has a lot to offer Norwegian companies.
-As you might be aware of by 2022 will have the Iargest population
-By next year: Higher growth than china
The next is to:
– Empower the next wave of economic cooperation between India and Norway, Which means that we need
– To engage with India in a new way.
– To meet the young India rising,
– Adapt to the fast changing political landscape of India
Finally, the next is to positions Norway even higher in India
Amongst the speakers was Honorable State Secretary Morten Høglund from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs accompanied by Norway’s new ambassador to India, Mr. Nils Ragnar Kamsvåg.
The state secretary had the pleasure to announce the re-opening of the Consulate General in Mumbai, happening in November. By opening of the Consult General, the government is hoping to create a success story in Mumbai. He expressed his enthusiasm towards Asian business. Due to the large growth in the global economy of Asia, and especially in India, it is only natural that India is becoming a central actor on the world stage, not only economically but also politically. This will contribute to the importance of a good and prolonged relationship between Norway and India, and at the same time, be a contributor to growth in cooperation between these two countries.
Click here to read his statement
Embassy of India with second secretary N. Ponnapan gave us an insight on India, what they have accomplished and is hoping to accomplish in cooperation with Norway.
He also gave a brief outline of making India, the importance of approaching the investors directly, and when in doubt, call the Indian Embassy. Furthermore he told us about the huge amounts which is invested in India, especially by Telenor, and about the further investments they are expecting from Norway.
We take great pride in having five out of seven speakers this year to be women. Amongst them, Group Executive Vice President It & Operations DNB, Liv Fiksdahl. Borghild Holen, Head of International Financial Institutions and Trade with Marie Tveit, Senior Vice President, Global Export Finance, both working in DNB. They gave the attendants their valuable inputs on the key functions of DNB, Mumbai Representative Office, which is to support the business interests of their Nordic clients in India.
Astrid Etienne, Head of Industry at GIEK spoke about GIEK`s mission is to promote export and investments abroad. This is being done by issuing guarantees, not loans, on the behalf of the Norwegian government. Furthermore, she gave a presentation on their role in an export transaction. The most important thing to take with you from this presentation is that GIEK covers bank risks. This means that GIEK takes risk where commercial banks are reluctant. We also where given an overlook of statistics from 2006 to 2014 that showed a strong growth within guarantee liabilities. The industries in their Indian portfolio is oil, gas, maritime and energy. We were delighted to hear that Norwegian engines is providing electricity in India. GIEK and their guarantee to the Norwegian exporter, which will be paid upon delivery, makes it all possible!
As for the AGM, NICCI welcomes DNB and Ingrid Åsheim, Vice president, Central & Eastern Europe, Russia, Turkey, India as their representative in the board. Ingrid told us that she was pleased to be asked and that it IS a pleasure to be joining the board again. To quote Ingrid: “It is the right time for DNB to join again”.
Deciding on what activities to put in motion should be a demand from the members. What kind of events do they want?
Rina Sunder wrapped up the meeting by giving a presentation on what the year 2014 had in store for NICCI. To sum it up: 2014 has been a good year for NICCI! The members are giving us license to operate. We are blessed to be working with very strong players. Further, on, 2015 is going to be an even more active year, with the administration on board, this can only get better!
Looking forward to seeing you at next year’s AGM!