New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister of Denmark Mette Frederiksen held an in-depth exchange of views on bilateral relations at a Virtual Summit between India and Denmark on 28 September 2020.
Both the leaders discussed the Covid-19 pandemic and global matters of interest to both sides, including climate change and green transition and reached common understanding with a view to accelerating sustainable economies and societies.
The two Prime Ministers agreed to elevate India-Denmark relations to a Green Strategic Partnership and acknowledged the importance of establishing the Green Strategic Partnership, under which India and Denmark will cooperate through relevant Ministries, institutions and stakeholders.
Prime Minister Modi and Prime Minister Frederiksen also stressed on close partnership in addressing global challenges and solutions on green energy transition and climate change.
The two sides envisage the energy partnership to be further strengthened over the coming years. India and Denmark agree to be at the forefront in the global fight against climate change. The two countries agreed to hold regular consultations and dialogue on climate change and renewable energy at various levels.
The two Prime Ministers agreed to work towards further expanding and strengthening the existing Government-to-Government cooperation on environment/water and circular economy and agreed to cooperate in water efficiency and non-revenue water (water loss) and in this context tasked the Indian Ministry of Jal Shakti and the Danish Environmental Protection Agency and the Danish Ministry of Environment and Food to develop a Work Plan for an initial period of three years (2021-23).
The two Prime Ministers expressed their joint wish to enhance cooperation in the specific areas of water supply, water distribution, wastewater treatment, sewerage systems, re-use of treated wastewater, water management and energy optimization in the water sector through the Indo-Danish Water Technology Alliance.
Both the leaders noted that Danish companies are contributing to designing infrastructure projects in India and welcomed greater engagement of Danish side in all fields of sustainable urban development.
The two Prime Ministers welcomed the idea of developing partnerships between Governments, institutions and businesses of the two countries with special focus on green and climate-friendly technologies. They recognized the importance of regulatory framework conditions to support public and private investments in green energy.
Both leaders appreciated the deep cooperation on maritime affairs and noted the potential for enhancing cooperation in ship-building and design, maritime services and Green shipping, as well as port development.
India and Denmark confirmed the emerging cooperation in Intellectual Property Rights, which will help to modernize and strengthen their national intellectual property systems to promote innovation, creativity and technological advancement.
The two leaders recognized their shared interest in digitization and digital solutions and business models in the green transition and decided to collaborate for enhancement of development, innovation and demonstration in the field of digital technologies to support green sustainable growth.
Given the immense potential to collaborate in the agricultural sector, the two Prime Ministers encouraged fostering deeper and closer cooperation between authorities, businesses and research institutions in the sectors of food processing and food safety, as well as animal husbandry and dairying.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister of Denmark Mette Frederiksen emphasized the potential and their common desire to strengthen the dialogue and cooperation in the health sector. They confirmed their interest in expanding dialogue and sharing best practices on health policy issues, including on epidemics and vaccines, especially to combat Covid-19 and future pandemics.
Both sides agreed to examine the possibilities for labour mobility, as well as to consider ease of travel between the two countries to facilitate greater people-to-people interaction and strengthen cooperation in the tourism sector.
