Agreement forges links between Wolverhampton and India

 - has been signed today (TUES NOV 16) during a trade mission to the country.

Wolverhampton City Council chief executive Simon Warren is leading a delegation to Bangalore on a week-long working visit where he is selling what the city has to offer potential Indian investors.

The memorandum of understanding was signed this morning by Simon on behalf of the local authority, Professor Richard Hall for the University of Wolverhampton and Aroon Raman for the Confederation of Indian Industry.

The document states that the partners have pledged to work closely together to enhance trading and investment opportunities, to host inward investment missions to respective regions, offer advice and support to each other and businesses seeking opportunities in respective areas, to promote each others' regions and supply data to support investment.

Simon Warren said: "We are not in India for fun, we are here for results. Wolverhampton needs new jobs and they are only going to come from the private sector. India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world and we need to use our links with the country to bring opportunities to our city.

"We have a skilled workforce specialising in the aerospace industry and we are in Bangalore this week because that is the centre of India's aerospace industry. Signing this memorandum of understanding sets out and formalises what the aim of his working trip is all about - making the contacts and building the relationships that we very much hope will bring future rewards in terms of jobs and investment to Wolverhampton.

"This week is all about hard-selling what Wolverhampton has to offer, investment is not going to come to us - we have to go out and get it."

In the coming days the Wolverhampton delegation will be visiting and meeting officials from companies like Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, National Aerospace Laboratories, Dynamatic and other advanced engineering businesses. The delegation will also host business events specifically targeted at the aerospace sector and the supply chain companies.

ENDS

Picture: Simon Warren, chief executive of Wolverhampton City Council, Aroon Raman from the Confederation of Indian Industry and Professor Richard Hall from the University of Wolverhampton sign the trade agreement in Bangalore, India, this morning.

Issued by Wolverhampton City Council’s News and Information Team.