MUMBAI: Signing an MoU between Maharashtra and the German state of Hessen to enhance mutual cooperation, CM Devendra Fadnavis said Hessen will be the gateway to Germany and Europe for Maharashtra.CM Fadnavis said Maharashtra will be the gateway to India and the Indo-Pacific region for Hessen. CM Fadnavis expressed his belief that the Maharashtra-Hessen partnership will boost investment, innovation, employment and skill development and create new opportunities for citizens.A mutual MoU was signed on Friday to enhance mutual cooperation between Maharashtra and Hessen. This agreement was signed by CM Fadnavis and Hessen’s Minister President Boris Rhein.“The Joint Declaration of Intent aims to deepen economic cooperation between Maharashtra and Hessen by promoting sustainable economic growth, investment and business cooperation, R&D partnerships, technological advancement including AI, and skilled workforce mobility across the two regions. A Joint Working Group (JWG) will be established within 90 days of the signing to determine the modalities for implementing the declaration,” CM Fadnavis said in a post on X.As part of his five-day visit to India, Rhein led a high-level delegation to New Delhi and Mumbai this week with a focus on strengthening economic ties, expanding business opportunities and attracting skilled talent from India. The visit comes at an important moment for India-Germany cooperation, with discussions spanning technology, pharmaceuticals, finance, IT, logistics, talent mobility and market access. Dr. Gunjan Bhardwaj, Co-Founder & CEO of Partex.AI was also part of the delegation.Rhein praised the rapid infrastructure development in Maharashtra and the conducive environment created by Maharashtra for global industry and technology investment. Rhein said that the relations between India and Germany as well as Maharashtra and Hessen are not limited to economic and industrial cooperation only, but are based on the common values of democracy, rule of law, multilateral cooperation and a rules-based international system. Rhein expressed confidence that Hessen is a financially and economically important state in Germany and the MoU between the two states will give a boost to industry, investment, skill development, exchange of business delegations, assistance to investors and creation of new business opportunities.The agreement covers four key sectors – industry, services, information technology, as well as skilled manpower and cross-border mobility. There are extensive cooperation opportunities in the sectors of pharmaceuticals, healthcare, engineering, automotive industry, financial services, logistics, digital economy and artificial intelligence. Cm Fadnavis appealed to the industries of Hessen to invest more in Maharashtra and for the industries of Maharashtra to use Hessen to enter the German and European markets.
