As part of India’s G20 presidency, which culminates this weekend with a mega summit of world leaders, the Indiaspora G20 Forum in August saw 300 pioneers of the Indian diaspora from 26 countries in attendance.
The Indiaspora Forum, which aims to evolve as the ‘Davos for the Global Indian’, explored how the diaspora can contribute to the success of ‘India@100’ in the year 2047. Participants included ambassadors, cabinet secretaries, investors , entrepreneurs, corporate titans, philanthropists, academics, artists, healthcare practitioners, next-generation torchbearers, AI savants and environmentalists.
Indiaspora, a non-profit organization founded in the US in 2012, operates in eight countries and is building strong relationships in at least 20 other countries. We include political and public policy leaders, Fortune 500 CEOs, academics, artists, legal celebrities, physicians, scientists, investors, environmentalists and, of course, entrepreneurs. People of Indian descent are even starting to make progress in the American sports arena, which has been a barely considered calling for most of us until now.
Even casual observers have noticed that America is closely watching India and proactively trying to strengthen bilateral relations. Witness Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent state visit and the substantive, in-depth dialogues that took place during his stay.
India benefits from the diaspora’s close relationship with the homeland. An example of this is that remittances from the diaspora to India in 2022 exceeded $100 billion. This amount is 27 percent higher than foreign direct investment. Not surprisingly, nearly a quarter of these remittances came from the US alone. Cross-border financial flows are not the only focus. According to one recent estimate, people of Indian descent make up just over one percent of the US population, but they account for six percent of US tax revenues. This, among other factors, allows the Indian diaspora to have a strong voice on issues of bilateral importance in the US-India corridor.
The recent push for cooperation between the two countries in the education sector has received a major boost from the Indian diaspora in the US. This topic was explored during a panel discussion at the Indiaspora G20 Forum. In the area of immigration and visas, a thorny issue for millions, diaspora organizations in the US (including Indiaspora) have helped drive changes in processes and rules, and continue to advocate for useful legislation. During the early stages of COVID, India needed raw materials to start producing vaccines. The Indian diaspora facilitated the transfer of material, technology and knowledge from the US to India, with the result that India became a sought after and reliable global vaccine supplier. These are concrete, constructive and useful roles that the diaspora has played in the recent past.
It is worth reiterating that the diaspora played a key role in bringing America and India together for the breakthrough of the civil nuclear deal nearly two decades ago. Past G20 presidencies have focused on specific issues such as empowering women, fighting corruption, strengthening financial governance, fairness of the global tax system, trade and investment, and climate action. India has opted for a more overarching theme, with defined focus areas underneath.
The absence of two key leaders from the Indian capital does not detract from the aspirational value of India’s G20 slogan ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ or ‘One Earth – One Family – One Future’, which positions the G20 as a unity among nations. As India rises to become a world power, the diaspora would do well to take to heart the spirit of India’s G20 presidency.
As the Indian diaspora takes up increasingly prominent positions in a variety of professions around the world, India is benefiting by leveraging their skills, networks, status and emotional ties to their country of origin. This symbiosis bodes well for India’s progress towards a hundred years of independence and beyond. The Leaders’ Summit is seen as a highlight of India’s G20 presidency. From the diaspora dimension, it is a loud cry for a shared and brighter future, full of possibilities as a force for good.
(MR Rangaswami is the Founder and Chairman of Indiaspora in San Francisco and Sanjeev Joshipura is the Executive Director of Indiaspora in Washington, DC)
Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the authors.