ESCP recognises IFIICC’s pivotal role in UAE-Israel-India trilateral

The European business school (ESCP), has highlighted the global potential of trilateral ties between Israel, the UAE and India during a recent seminar organised in cooperation with SPJIMR.

Established in 1819, the ESCP Business School (École Supérieure de Commerce de Paris) is considered to be the world’s first business school. It is a pan-European institution, with campuses in Paris, Berlin, London, Madrid, Turin and Warsaw.

During the seminar, ambassadors from Israel and UAE to India, business leaders and international business students also recognised the pivotal role of the International Federation of Indo-Israel Chambers of Commerce (IFIICC), and its founder and chairperson, Merzi Sodawaterwala, in helping develop cooperation between the countries in areas of innovation and international business.

Dr Ron Malka, Ambassador of Israel to India and founding patron of IFIICC, said: “I am extremely delighted to witness that the seeds sown by us are bearing good fruit with esteemed institutes like ESCP Business School and SPJIMR recognising the global potential of Israel-UAE-India trilateral and the leadership role of IFIICC under Merzi Sodawaterwala. I am confident that we will see many great success stories from this collaboration which will result in significant economic impact for all nations.”

Dr Ahmed Abdul Rahman AlBanna, Ambassador of the UAE to India and founding patron of IFIICC, said: ”India is a key strategic partner of UAE and trade between the two countries has increased from $185 million (Dh500 million) in 1985 to $60 billion (Dh220 billion) in 2019 to 2020, making the UAE India’s third largest trading partner. There is tremendous potential in the trilateral cooperation between Israel, the UAE and India and multilateral cooperation with other countries in the areas of technology, innovation, healthcare, food security and solar energy. The IFIICC, under the leadership of Merzi, is proving the point by establishing partnerships in these areas that leverage the strengths of these three nations in this trilateral relationship to benefit the world.”

Ecoppia is a world leader in autonomous robotic solar panel cleaning solutions,. The water-free and energy independent robots have cleaned more than 3 billion panels to date. Ecoppia’s CEO, Jean Scemana, said, “We are delighted to become the first-of-its-kind success story for the Israel, UAE and India trilateral partnership and by bringing our innovative technology from Israel, manufactured in India, for a landmark project in the UAE.” The project will be executed in collaboration with a leading European renewable energy partner, which is a treasured global business relationship established with the support of the IFIICC in record time.”

Engaging the next generation

The seminar was designed to allow the next generation of students and global leaders to develop an understanding of the business dynamics in India and the Middle East.

Prof. Gerard Naulleau, Director of the International program at ESCP Business School said, “This year Merzi, Chairman IFIICC, was invited to the seminar to present to the students the global potential of Israel, the UAE and India’s trilateral ties. I will like to applaud Merzi for the commendable trilateral and multilateral business achievements and strategic initiatives of IFIICC. Considering the overwhelming response to Merzi’s session, it will not surprise me if the students are keen to collaborate with IFIICC.”

Prof. Prem Chandrani, Chairperson International Relations at SPJIMR said, “Given the recent development of the Abraham Accords, we decided to explore the global potential of Israel, the UAE and India’s trilateral ties as a theme in the programme. Given the tremendous success achieved by IFIICC, led by Merzi, we invited him to take this seminar and I am delighted to see the tremendous impact of this programme.”