Agri exports are a major boon to GDP

Almost 39 per cent of the rural gross domestic product (GDP) was from the agriculture sector in 2023 with Madhya Pradesh registering the highest rural GDP contribution at 52 per cent. Furthermore, a 2023 survey conducted by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia Pacific (UNESCAP) on digital and sustainable trade facilitation positioned India as a leader in global trade facilitation efforts, having achieved an envious 93.55 per cent in 2023, compared to 90.32 percent in 2021. The survey, encompassing 140 economies and evaluating 60 trade facilitation measures, highlights the country’s commitment to simplifying trade procedures and enhancing transparency through initiatives like Turant Customs, the Single Window Interface for Facilitation of Trade (SWIFT), pre-arrival data processing, e-Sanchit, and coordinated border management. The states attracting the most FDI inflow (equity inflow, equity capital of unincorporated bodies, re-invested earnings, and other capital) between October 2019 and September 2023 are Maharashtra ($61.92 billion), Karnataka (47.30 billion), and Gujarat ($34.16 billion), followed at a distance by Tamil Nadu ($9.85 billion), Haryana ($8.79 billion) and Telangana ($5.92 billion).

In spite of unprecedented logistical challenges like high freight rates and container shortages, India has managed to record an impressive increase in shipments even for commodities whose exports have been subjected to curbs. The economic outlook for 2024-25 looks promising as the country enters a general election year. Despite geopolitical factors and varying FDI trends, India remains a bright spot for global investors, thanks to its robust macroeconomic fundamentals. With a large and growing market, a youthful workforce and a steadfast policy emphasis on education reforms, upskilling, manufacturing, tech-enabled governance, infrastructure development and enhanced regional connectivity, the country offers significant opportunities for both greenfield investors and businesses engaging in market expansion, mergers and acquisition and supply chain diversification.

The Centre has been monitoring export performance, including that of agricultural and processed food products, in the current financial year 2022-23 vis-à-vis 2021-22. No targets have been fixed yet for exports for 2023-24. During the current financial year (April 2022 – January 2023), agricultural exports stood at $43.37 billion, registering an increase of 6.04% over $40.90 billion during the corresponding period of the previous financial year-April 2021 to January 2022, in which year, agricultural export touched the highest ever level of $50.21 billion. Rise in agricultural exports improves realisations for farmers and has a positive impact on their income. In order to ensure that the farmers benefit from exports, the Union Government has launched a farmer connect portal as a platform for Farmer Producer Organisations/Companies (FPOs/FPCs) and cooperatives to directly interact with exporters. The Centre has also taken several steps at the state and district levels to promote agriculture exports. Additionally, state-specific action plans have been prepared, while State Level Monitoring Committees (SLMCs), nodal Agencies for agricultural exports and cluster level committees have been formed in a number of states. The government is utilising the District as Export Hub (DEH) initiative to achieve the objectives of Agriculture Export Policy (AEP). Under the DEH initiative, products including agricultural and processed food products with export potential have been identified in all 733 districts across the country apart from formulating a ‘State Export Strategy’ for all states and UTs.