Sides agree to increase cooperation on healthcare, renewable energy, AI LONDON: The 11th meeting of the UAE-India High Level Joint Task Force on Investments was held in Abu Dhabi on Thursday, the Emirates News Agency reported. The task force was set up in 2013 to promote trade, investment and economic ties between the two countries. Officials from the two sides discussed the UAE-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, which went into effect in May last year and aims to boost cultural, political and economic ties. Since its inception it has helped to reduce tariffs on more than 80 percent of products, while non-oil trade between the two countries rose by 5.8 percent to $50.5 billion in the year following its introduction, the report said. The task force also discussed plans for a joint investment treaty and ways to increase capital flows into India from UAE sovereign investment organizations. The Indian delegation highlighted the investment opportunities in industries such as renewable energy, health, semiconductors and asset monetization. The talks also covered the India-UAE Start-Up Bridge, a platform for the exchange of knowledge on market access, investment funds, venture capital and other areas of mutual interest. The delegates also reviewed the launch of the Abu Dhabi-India Virtual Trade Corridor, which aims to boost trade by developing paperless data exchange systems, as well as the progress of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority’s plans to establish a financial-free zone in Gujarat to support future investments in India. During the meeting, the UAE’s Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology and India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry signed a memorandum of understanding to boost cooperation in the areas of space, healthcare, renewable energy and artificial intelligence. A separate deal was signed between Al-Etihad Payments and the National Payments Corp. of India to create the UAE’s domestic card scheme. This will be the UAE’s first unified and secure card payment platform which is designed to accelerate the country’s transition to a digital economy.