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New Jersey to send trade team to India
Thursday, 18 September 2003, 19:30 IST
NEW YORK: William Watley, chief executive of the New Jersey Commerce and Economic Growth Commission, announced this while addressing the first exposition of the Asian Indian Chamber of Commerce (AICC) in Edison, New Jersey.
Walley said several companies from India had a presence in New Jersey and that his government wanted the linkages to grow further.
"We are walking the talk," he said at the panel on "Opportunities in State and Federal Government for Minority-Owned Businesses".
Seema Singh, New Jersey ratepayer advocate and president of AICC, is working out the details of the visit, he added.
Singh told IANS no more than 20 companies would be represented as the idea was to have intensive interactions.
"The visit is being organised by the New Jersey State Department, and I am facilitating the arrangements since I visit India often and know about the country."
Addressing the exposition, Singh said, "The specific purpose of this exposition is to learn from our distinguished speakers on how to increase Asian participation in the state's business by entering into productive partnerships and exploring opportunities within New Jersey state government and private business sectors."
She said Asian Americans in New Jersey were estimated at almost six percent of the state's 8.5 million population as per the 2002 Census.
"Various estimates now place our umbers at anywhere from eight percent to 10 percent of the state's population."
Alfred Koeppe, chair of the state's Economic Development Authority (EDA), said the Indian community needed access to capital and strategic alliances, and added that his organisation was willing to extend its help in every possible way.
"One of the frustrations of EDA is that the many small businesses are not familiar with what EDA can provide." He said EDA was a "powerful economic engine" that had provided $16 billion in financing to 8,000 businesses since its inception in 1974, resulting in 180,000 full-time jobs and 240,000 construction jobs.
He took the example of Deep Foods, and said because of the help extended by EDA the company has grown from a small story selling Indian ethnic food to a fairly large small business enterprise.
According to the organisers, 50 booths were set up at the exposition, with two-to-three exhibitors in each booth.
Supported by New Jersey Chamber of Commerce, New Jersey Chinese American Federation, National Federation of Filipino American Associations, Korean American Association of New Jersey, Vietnamese-American Coalition, the event was sponsored by Fleet Bank.
Source: IANS
Source: IANS