US envoy Elizabeth Jones praises India for making great strides in entrepreneurship

New Delhi [India], December 2 : US Charge d' Affaires to India, Elizabeth Jones, on Friday praised India for making great strides in the field of entrepreneurship.
Speaking at the Nexus Alumni Networking Event at India Habitat Center in Delhi, she said, "India is currently making great strides in the field of entrepreneurship. Despite the pandemic, India has emerged as the third largest ecosystem for startups globally with over 77,000 recognized startups."
Incidentally, India recently became the world's fifth-largest economy by overtaking the United Kingdom. Now, the United States, China, Japan, and Germany are the only nations with economies larger than India's.
"The Indian startups have shown innovation across all business sectors, from agriculture at one end of the spectrum to space at the other end. Additionally, Indian startups have earned huge global respect," said Jones.
The real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of 6-6.5 per cent in a world full of uncertainties is the new normal and India is set to be the third-largest economy by 2029.
"This is evidenced by India being home to 107 companies with USD 1 billion dollars or more in valuation. It's worth noting that 21 of these very successful startups were launched in 2022 alone," said the US envoy.
The US is one of the largest markets in the world and is also a world leader in innovation and research. Indian startups have figured prominently in the American landscape over the last few years. In Silicon Valley alone, so much success can be directly attributed to the innovations coming from Indian start-ups.
Addressing the event, she said that Nexus holds a special place within the US Mission to India as it is a pioneering initiative by the US government.
"The primary objective of Nexus is to provide relevant support, expertise, mentorship, and network access to the Indian start-up community to create a more cooperative, collaborative, and dynamic start-up ecosystem. Nexus has become one of the most sought-after incubators in India due to the expertise and dedication brought by the Nexus team and the support received from the start-up ecosystem. Some of the key American and Indian partners who have contributed immensely to Nexus' success include Amazon, Microsoft, Start-up India, TIE Delhi, and the Indian Angel Network. Nexus and its alumni thank you for your cooperation and excellent support," said Jones.
The American envoy further reiterated that Nexus will continue to have an important role to play in enhancing ties between Indian entrepreneurs and US companies, particularly through technology collaboration.
"The linkages are already evident in the greater than 90 business connections formed between Nexus and American companies. Nexus alumni have generated external funding exceeding USD 40 million and created more than 3,200 jobs! We also strongly believe that future business leaders will emerge from this group and that many of you will be at the forefront of enhancing US-India business ties," added Jones.
Recently, the 9th ministerial meeting of the India-US Economic and Financial Partnership was held in November 2022.
The Indian delegation was led by the Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman and the USA delegation was led by the Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.
Both sides affirmed their commitment to debt sustainability, transparency in bilateral lending, and coordinating closely on extending fair and equal debt treatment to countries facing debt distress.
Both agreed to mobilise USD 100 billion every year till 2025 from public and private sources for developing countries, in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation.
The countries also discussed mutual collaboration in sharing information to tackle offshore tax evasion.
In 2021, overall US-India bilateral trade in goods and services reached a record USD 157 billion.
The United States is India's largest trading partner and most important export market.
America is one of the few countries with which India has a trade surplus. In 2021-22, India had a trade surplus of USD 32.8 billion with the US.