Scotland Minister to lead delegation to India

Scotland’s Deputy First Minister, John Swinney, will begin a week-long visit to India on Friday to strengthen bilateral ties with a focus on trade and investment and to boost cooperation in technology and life sciences, the UK Foreign Office said Thursday.

Swinney, the deputy head of the devolved Scottish government, will be joined by a delegation of senior leaders from Scotland’s higher education sector during the visit from November 23 to 29.

The deputy first minister is set to hold a series of meetings in Delhi and Bangalore with business and industry leaders, as well as representatives from the Indian government.

“India is an important international partner to Scotland and we have successfully collaborated on hundreds of different projects in recent years — from the Ganga River Health Project to delivering cost effective precision medicine solutions for diabetes,” Swinney said, on the eve of his India visit.

The visit will focus on technology and life sciences, promote trade and investment, and strengthen education and cultural links, according to the UK Foreign Office.

“Scotland already has a strong history of engineering and innovation and Edinburgh has been named as the best European place to start a tech business thanks to its top facilities, strong international connections, world class universities and fantastic quality of life.

“There is much we can learn from India, a country highly regarded for its spirit of creativity, entrepreneurship and young ambitious workforce,” he said.

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Find out more about the opportunities for collaboration in the Scottish life sciences industry, here.