Modinomics and Its Implications for Korea - India Cooperation

The government of India is pushing ahead with a series of economic reform policies, named 'Modinomics' after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, focusing on high growth and a business-friendly environment. Modinomics emphasizes the virtuous circle of investment that promotes employment and consumption, which induces additional investment. India's government has been concentrating on improving the business environment by easing or removing various regulations related to investment, and also by establishing a reliable and efficient leadership. The government of India has especially placed a priority on attracting private and foreign investment to the development of infrastructure and promoting the manufacturing sector, based on key Modinomics policies such as smart cities, the development of the Industrial Corridor, and finally, the Make in India campaign. It is against such a background that we place great emphasis on the importance of India. Considering the ongoing slowdown of economic growth in China, more active cooperation with India is called for. Also, in order to overtake the gap between Korea and Japan in terms of economic cooperation with India, strategies must urgently be established for expediting such cooperation. We suggest the development of a 'Korean Industrial City', as a new economic cooperation project with India. It dovetails neatly with key policies of India's government, namely its focus on the promotion of the manufacturing sector, development of infrastructure, and industrial corridors.