Will drive sustainable growth with focused initiatives in FY25: CII K'taka

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Karnataka on Wednesday said it aims to drive sustainable, competitive and inclusive growth through focused initiatives for 2024-25.

CII Karnataka will be taking forward the initiatives for the year 2024-25 aligned to the theme Globally Competitive Karnataka Partnerships for Sustainable and Inclusive Growth, its Chairman N Venu said at a press conference here.

The focus will be on policy advocacy, thought leadership, inclusiveness, ecosystem competitiveness, growth, sustainability, global linkages, and international partnerships, he said.

Collaborating closely with the government, CII Karnataka aims to create an enabling environment for businesses to thrive, Venu said, adding, key areas include technology and innovation, clean and alternative energy, MSME (Micro, Small, & Medium Enterprises) growth, and emerging sectors such as semiconductors, solar and mobile phones (electronic).

According to him, CII will continue to work closely with the policy makers on ease of doing business and sectoral policies with a focus on promoting clean energy and alternative fuels, strengthening competitiveness of MSMEs, building stronger industry-academia and industry-startup connects to drive industrial growth both in and beyond Bengaluru.

"We are committed to embracing advanced technologies and fostering innovation, which will be fundamental to our efforts of supporting industry 4.0 transformation. Our goal is to strengthen Karnataka's position as the hub for cutting-edge research, development, and implementation. By collaborating with stakeholders and leveraging technology, we believe we can make remarkable progress," he said.

Vice Chairman of CII Karnataka, Rabindra Srikantan, said CII Karnataka's commitment to growth aligns with the aspirations of the state.

"MSMEs play a vital role in Karnataka's economic landscape. It is crucial to support industry through services that drive competitiveness, sustainability and transformation, build business connects and linkages to growth through partnerships," Srikantan said.

According to CII Karnataka, emerging sectors such as aerospace, electric mobility, healthcare, and agri-tech hold immense potential for growth and job creation. Karnataka makes a significant contribution to the country's GDP; however, the majority of the growth in Karnataka comes from Bengaluru. The Beyond Bengaluru' initiative intends to empower tier 2 and 3 cities across Karnataka to allow them to meaningfully contribute to the economic growth in the state, it was noted.

Venu said CII would also proactively engage with various stakeholders, including international consulates, to seek out business opportunities, promote job preparedness through focused programmes and cross learning initiatives for both faculty and students, and strengthen entrepreneurship and leadership development through targeted initiatives such as the 'CII Indian Women Network' and 'CII Young Indians.