South Asia Regional Insights Spring/Summer 2023

New direct flights from Melbourne to Mumbai enhance our connectivity.

Air India will commence non-stop flights from India’s second-largest city to Melbourne from December 2023, operating 3 times per week and adding almost 40,000 seats per year into Victoria. It’s the first time in more than 40 years that India’s national carrier has provided a non-stop service between Mumbai and Australia. Direct flights are an important driver of all aspects of our relationship with India and will help increase trade, investment, education and tourism opportunities. With the support of the Victorian Government and Melbourne Airport, the Air India flights will generate $55 million for the Victorian economy each year and create an estimated 264 jobs in our aviation and tourism sectors.

India is a massively growing arrivals market, with more Indians choosing to visit Victoria to work, study or holiday than any other state.  Indians now represent the second-largest number of international visitors to Victoria after New Zealand. During peak season there are thirteen direct Delhi to Melbourne flights per week offered by Air India and Qantas, and daily direct flights from Colombo to Melbourne offered by Sri Lankan Airlines.  This means up to 23 direct connections from the region to Melbourne per week.

The Governor of Victoria’s official visit to India strengthens relationships.

The Governor of Victoria visited Mumbai from 5-9 December 2023 to increase cooperation across trade, investment, education and cultural connections between Victoria and India. The visit included supporting the first Victorian trade delegation to Cosmoprof Mumbai, convening a trade and investment roundtable with the Indo-Australia Chamber of Commerce, supporting Victorian universities’ presences in India, celebrating alumni achievements and contributions to the Victoria-India relationship and showcasing Victoria’s and India’s screen connections at an Indian Film Festival of Melbourne event in Mumbai.

The Australia India Leadership Dialogue in Melbourne showcases initiatives for an inclusive digital workforce.

The Victorian Government was a proud sponsor of the Australia India Leadership Dialogue (AILD) in Melbourne from 22-23 November 2023. The AILD brings together Ministers, CEOs and leaders from government, industry and civil society in Australia and India.

H.E Prof the Hon Margaret Gardner AC, Governor of Victoria, the Hon Jacinta Allan MP, Premier, and the Hon Natalie Hutchins MP, Minister for Jobs and Industry, Minister for Treaty and First Peoples, and Minister for Women participated in the dialogue, demonstrating Victoria’s commitment to the relationship with India.

Minister Hutchins joined her counterpart minister from the state of Tamil Nadu, Dr PTR, Minister for IT and Digital Services, and Atlassian’s Global Head of Talent and HR, Avani Prabhakar to discuss ‘the inclusive workforce in the digital age’. The discussion highlighted how India and Australia, with state government initiatives, are supporting greater diversity in the tech workforce.

Global Victoria continues to support opportunities for Victorian companies under AI-ECTA

Global Victoria led the first Victorian delegation to the world’s largest beauty trade show in South Asia, Cosmoprof India Mumbai 2023 in December 2023. The mission supported Victorian companies that have recently entered the Indian market to grow their market presence.

Companies exhibited at the Melbourne, Australia Pavilion, joined a full-day business program and retail tour of Mumbai, and met with buyers and distributors.

According to Statista, the market is currently valued at US$25.7 billion and will grow to US$31 billion by 2027 and Cosmoprof Mumbai is a rapidly growing event in the international cosmetics calendar.

Global Victoria was proud to partner with Austrade and Wine Australia to support Victorian companies at ProWine Mumbai in November 2023. The trade mission supported a targeted number of Victorian wineries that have products that can benefit from the tariff reductions and are interested in building their brand in India through a long-term strategy.

Business success stories

Global Victoria was pleased to support the launch of the Newland Global Group’s Case Studies: Advocating Business Success Between Australia and India in Melbourne, which features insights from three Victorian businesses succeeding in India:

• Connect2MyDoctor - is having success partnering with Indian health providers to deliver virtual care offerings to complement how people access and experience healthcare in India.
• E2 Learning – has growing demand in India for its online English language test preparation and general English classes to its global students, leveraging its digital marketing tools.
• Zero Latency – now has two thriving free-roam virtual reality gaming centres in India with its Indian partner Samrey Entertainments LLP.

You can access the full 26 case studies via the Newland Global Group’s platform.

Alumni Business Success Stories

Congratulations to Victorian company Care Essentials for recently winning the prestigious Australian Exporter of the Year. Founder Abhay Sinha is a Melbourne Business School graduate who acquired the company after migrating to Melbourne. Care Essentials now exports to more than 70 countries. Its flagship product, the Cocoon Warming System is used during surgery to maintain normal body temperature.

Sunpower Renewables established by Monash University alumni, Rahul Kale and Nitasha Badhwar was awarded the Governor of Victoria Exporter of the Year Award in October and launched their innovative design UPS for India as part of the Governor’s visit to India in December 2023.

Upcoming activities

Tamil Nadu Global Investor Meet 7-8 January 2024

Global Victoria is pleased to be supporting the Australian Government’s presence as a Partner Country at the Tamil Nadu Global Investor Meet from 7-8 January 2024. Tamil Nadu is an important trade and investment partner for Victoria with opportunities in education, technology and infrastructure.

Victoria’s Commissioner to South Asia, Michelle Wade, will attend the event.

To stay informed of upcoming events and trade missions, visit Global Victoria’s Events page.