Narendra Modi Urges MSMEs to Use Trade Pacts for Global Growth

During his address for the 80th Independence Day on August 15, 2026, Narendra Modi urged India's micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to utilize the nation's expanding network of free trade agreements (FTAs) to increase the global reach of Indian products. Modi noted that India has finalized FTAs with approximately 40 countries since 2014, including recent pacts with the UAE, Mauritius, Australia, the UK, Oman, and the EFTA bloc, with agreements for New Zealand and the European Union also finalized.

The Prime Minister emphasized the need for sectors such as textiles, machinery, pharmaceuticals, and seafood to meet global quality standards to compete internationally. He specifically called for a shift in agriculture from exporting raw commodities to developing value-added food products, such as millets, while leveraging artificial intelligence to improve supply chain efficiency. Modi set ambitious goals for the coming decade, including placing 50 Indian companies in the Fortune 500 and establishing Indian banks and pharmaceutical firms among the world's top five.

Industry leaders from the Federation of Indian Export Organisations and the Council for Leather Exports welcomed the initiative. They noted that preferential market access allows small businesses, which currently account for 48.58% of India's exports and 31.1% of its GDP, to integrate into global value chains. The strategy also links agricultural security with energy diversification, promoting ethanol-blended fuel, hydrogen, solar, wind, and nuclear energy to protect the economy from global shocks.