The Hindu Business Line : `Our relationship with India transcends politics and economics' — Mr Dominique Girard, Ambassador of France in India

"I THINK India is a country that is so complex, so diversified, so rich, so paradoxical that it is a treat. There is not one day when I did not discover something I was totally ignorant of. Here, in India, when you open your eyes, you really learn," says Mr Dominique Girard, Ambassador of France in India.

Into the third year of his tenure in the country, Mr Girard says the relationship between India and France is a complete and vibrant one that transcends politics and economics and extends to areas such as culture and education.

In Thiruvananthapuram recently for the 25th anniversary celebrations of the city's Alliance Francaise, he spoke to Business Line on the economic ties between India and France, French investments in India and the cultural cooperation between the two countries.

Excerpts from the interview:

What is the nature of the economic relationship between India and France?

It is now a fairly extensive, complete and broad-based one. You know we were an important partner to India in the 1960s, the 1970s and the early 1980s when the order of the day was development.

So, at that time, the relationship was largely based on the financial assistance France was providing India. All that is changed.

Now, our relationship is based more on globalisation, which means that India has to catch up with needs in infrastructure.

We are present in this field with power, different aspects of water treatment, transportation and so on.

We have a similar relationship in the basic development sectors such as automobiles, where Renault coming to India in partnership with Mahindra & Mahindra is an important step.

We have several equipment-makers working in India, bringing in things and sourcing for their plants in France. We have industries which are oriented towards the Indian market, for instance, glass making. There is Lafarge, which is one of the world's cement giants developing its operations and looking for more. There are companies that have had a presence in India for a long time, updating their programmes and going into newer sectors such as mobile phone or broadband Internet networks, and so on.

And we are seeing lots of new investors, new partners... Plus our services sector is developing. French banks have developed their activities lately and are looking for more. Depending on the pace of the reforms in the retail sector in which we have a strong presence, we should see a lot of new activity.

In what areas do you see new French investments being made in India?

It is difficult to say, because, I think, very few sectors have remained untapped.

The automotive industry should be one of them. Agro-food business will, probably, see some changes. Are you also working towards encouraging Indian companies to invest in France?

We were the first to open an office in Delhi to facilitate and stimulate Indian investments in our country.

It is a branch of the `Invest in France' agency, which is an active in this field.

And we see there is a growing interest from the Indian companies to invest in France.

Culture has always been an important area of cooperation between India and France. What are the new initiatives in this area?

In the three years that I have been in India, we have launched and implemented an ambitious programme of `artists in residence'.

Under this, we have about 30 artists each year and — 15 from each side — has the results have been good.

And we also have new policies, for instance, in terms of co-publishing; the French Embassy would buy the rights of a French novel and allow an Indian publishing house to bring it out in English, Hindi or Bengali for the Indian public.

Another important element of this policy is cinema. There is much more space in India for French cinema and, conversely, in France for Indian cinema.

To facilitate the exchange, you have to take measures to reach out to the public. You also have to encourage co-productions, cooperation in screen writing and so on. So we are doing all that.

In education, what are your programmes to attract Indian students to study in France?

First of all, we have launched a comprehensive programme to develop direct relationships between universities and educational institutions.

Second, we have developed a network of what we call `Edu France' offices, which are supposed to help students get access to information.

We plan to actually change that into a new kind of organisation where the same body will give information, provide the applications, screen them and prepare for all the bureaucratic and administrative formalities.

So, is `Edu France' going to be redesigned?

Yes. We want to make it easier for students. We also have a scholarship programme.

Very often, money is not the main issue, because most of the applicants are from fairly high-income groups. Some incentives can, however, be given.

We have a programme, which also includes scholarships for French students to come to India. And we try to use that wisely to support the recruitment of the best students.

And, lastly, we have scientific cooperation activities to nurture the student exchange programme.