Denmark 2019 Denmark 2019 | Page 6

Th e Ambassador Welcomes Welcoming remarks by Ambassador of Denmark to India, H.E. Peter Taksøe-Jensen Greetings from the Royal Danish Embassy in New Delhi! I am indeed very pleased to write the welcoming words of this special magazine about Denmark and the role we want to play in the incredible land of India. We are publishing the magazine in honour of our participation as a partner country at Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2019 and the opening of our new Royal Danish Chancery. Denmark has been in India since Danish trading ships reached the shores of Tamil Nadu and established a trading station in Tranquebar four centuries ago. Since then our cordial relationship with India has evolved and we have developed a number of shared values including our belief in democracy, human rights and international rule based order. In April 2018, the Danish Prime Minister met with Indian Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi at the Indo-Nordic Summit and agreed to strengthen bilateral relations and increase cooperation within clean and sustainable energy, climate, agriculture, food safety, urbanization and smart cities, among others. During the meeting, the two Prime Ministers agreed to restart the Indo-Danish Joint Commission and in December 2018, the Danish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Anders Samuelsen relaunched the Indo-Danish Joint Commission with the Indian Minister of External Affairs, Smt. Sushma Swaraj. The relaunch of the Commission marked an important step in progression of the bilateral relationship between India and Denmark. Under the Joint Commission, there are seven sectors, that have been defined where we believe Denmark will have great opportunities for developing trade and economic co-operation with India. These sectors are; energy, smart cities, maritime, agriculture, digital governance, health and life science and gender equality. Through this magazine, I hope that you will learn more about Denmark and our competencies within these sectors. Please allow me to give you a short introduction for your inspiration. Since the oil crisis in the late 1970’s, Denmark has been on a political path away from fossil fuels in an effort to enhance energy security and become more sustainable. Strong focus on energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies has created a green growth trajectory