Endowed with an abundance of natural resources such as oil and gas, uranium, wind power, potash and of course land, water and sunshine for agriculture, Saskatchewan is among Canada's fastest growing provinces attracting huge investments and human resources.

In addition to being the country's ‘bread basket', Saskatchewan can boast of being the ‘seat of learning and higher education'. Innovation and enterprise are two of the province's strengths. Contributing to the $45-billion economy are primary industries (25 per cent) such as agriculture, mining and petroleum, while finance, insurance and retail sectors account for 15 per cent. Population is a little over one million, with a third under the age of 25.

Saskatchewan is now ready to do business with the world in general and with India, in particular, offering its top-class goods and services — some of them strategic, like uranium for nuclear energy, and some basic, like farm infrastructure and logistics. The Premier of Saskatchewan, Mr Brad Wall, is scheduled to visit India this week to strengthen economic ties and in pursuit of greater trade and investment opportunities.

The Business Line is the first, and perhaps the only Indian newspaper, to catch up with the Premier on the eve of what he believes would be a path-breaking visit to this country. Here are excerpts of Premier Wall's response to questions posed by this correspondent.

India is one of world's fastest growing significant economies. There is huge pent-up demand for a whole range of goods and services. What has Saskatchewan to offer to India?

Saskatchewan is in the enviable position of being India's largest trading partner within all of Canada and is well placed to help with the increasing demand in the Indian economy for food and energy. Saskatchewan represents over 40 per cent of all of Canada's exports to India (42-46 per cent). These exports currently comprise a wide range of goods but are primarily food (peas, lentils chickpeas) and fertiliser (potash) which translate to almost $1 billion of exports annually. It is hoped that Saskatchewan's next big entry into the Indian market will be in fuel, specifically uranium for nuclear fuel, as Saskatchewan is well established as a global leader in uranium exports.

What are India's major sectors where Saskatchewan would like to participate in terms of trade and investment?

Key sectors for trade are food, energy, minerals. In terms of investment, Saskatchewan has significant investment opportunities in the minerals and energy sectors which may be of interest to Indian companies looking to expand their business operations in these areas. We have an opportunity-rich economy which, through various incentives and a favourable policy environment, is well-positioned to link investors with those opportunities.

As suppliers of goods and services, many countries are currently targeting India. How does Saskatchewan propose to differentiate itself and show it has better capability to service India's needs?

Certainly in the area of agriculture and a global need for more food, Saskatchewan plays an integral role in providing the required fertiliser that will help increase production. In the commodity sector, specifically the pulse industry,

Saskatchewan's leading-edge plant development initiatives are ensuring that Saskatchewan can provide added health and nutritional benefits to the pulse products we export to India. In the last 10 years, the Crop Development Centre in Saskatoon has introduced over 60 different varieties of pulse crops — all of which enhance the value of Saskatchewan's exports and India's need to feed a growing population.

However, Saskatchewan also has extensive expertise in many agricultural areas which could offer a major advantage to India. Currently India can lose up to 30 per cent of its crop on an annual basis due to issues regarding storage, logistics and grain handling. Saskatchewan has companies with global expertise in all of these categories.

Additionally, Saskatchewan is a global leader in mining, energy, health science, life science, environmental science, CO2 carbon capture storage and the emerging bio-economy. All of these sectors have direct and indirect benefits to India's growth.

Trade is usually not a one-way street. What is it that Saskatchewan would like to source from India so that trade is largely in a state of balance?

One of the best parts of the Saskatchewan-India relationship is that we are non-competitors in all of our trade. With a population of just over 1 million, we are limited by the volume of imports we can purchase.

However, Canada has strong business and cultural links to India and the potential for import growth within Canada remains very high. Most importantly, India is acknowledged as a world leader in nuclear and agricultural biotech research and development, and from our perspective there are clear opportunities to partner with India in these areas. India has a young, dynamic population with a high demand for advanced education, and Saskatchewan can contribute to this as well by providing advanced education opportunities for Indian students. There may be shared opportunities for continued research in reducing emissions from coal used in power generation, as coal is a key resource for India and Saskatchewan.

I am aware of the Hon'ble Premier's views on investment, control and utilisation of natural resources. The Business Line was perhaps the only Indian daily to air the Premier's bold views, and suggest to Indian policymakers to take a cue. I seek further elaboration of the current policy on foreign investment in natural resources in Saskatchewan.

What are the broad principles that would guide FDI in natural resources in future?

Saskatchewan has a stable government, a competitive and stable business tax regime, and a transparent mineral royalty policy. The Government of Saskatchewan is committed to maintaining the province's position as one of the best places in the world to invest. We are lowering taxes, paying off debt and substantially improving our business climate.

The key point is this: We welcome investments that not only add to our economy, but also build on it to everyone's advantage. Our recent position regarding Saskatchewan's potash industry was based on this rationale, and it is a rationale which is proven and is working. Investment in Saskatchewan for 2010 is expected to reach $15 billion for the first timeever. With respect to our mining sector, the Fraser Institute's rankings of favourable mining policy environments place us fifth out of 51 jurisdictions around the world. And the mining industry in Saskatchewan will be investing over $43 billion in new mines and expansions in the next 20 years. This is very clearly a province that is open and welcoming to partnership in business and investment.

Potential future investments in Saskatchewan will be welcomed to the extent that they meet with all current and applicable international, Canadian and Saskatchewan laws and policies that are in force at the time of the investment.

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