India, EFTA to implement trade and investment agreement by 2025-end: Piyush Goyal

New Delhi: India and the four-nation group - the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) - are likely to operationalise the Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA), which was signed in March 2024, by the end of this year, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Monday.

Under the TEPA deal EFTA group, which includes Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, has promised to invest $100 billion and create 10 lakh direct jobs in India over the next 15 years.

Speaking at an event to launch India-EFTA Desk in New Delhi Goyal said all the four countries of EFTA group need to get the agreement ratified by their respective parliaments.

“In India we have already approved the TEPA, so we are sorted. We have to wait for their parliamentary processes, which may take anywhere between four to six months for all four countries to conclude, so fall of 2025 is somewhat possibly feasible, I would think,” Goyal said when asked about the timeframe for operationalisation of the agreement.

Switzerland’s State Secretary for Economic Affairs Helene Budliger Artieda said in Switzerland there are three stages for the approval out of which one has been completed.

“TEPA has passed through the first chamber, with no votes against it. It is now heading towards the second chamber, after which it has to go through a referendum,” Artieda said.

Switzerland has a bicameral parliament consisting of the National Council and the Council of States. The Swiss Council of States has approved the deal and it will now go to the National Council. After the approval from these two houses of parliament the deal will go for referendum, in which citizens of Switzerland will be asked to vote in favour or against the proposal.

Liechtenstein, Iceland and Norway have also started the processes for approval of the deal by their respective parliaments.

In a step towards operationalisation of the deal the two sides launched a dedicated platform called India-EFTA desk on Monday. The India-EFTA Desk will provide structured support to EFTA businesses looking to invest, expand, or establish operations in India,

“This desk will serve as the bridge between businesses on both sides, ensuring transparency, trust, and ease of doing business,” Goyal said.