IUFP-FICCI Delegation Visit to the USA
June 20 to June 27, 2009

Report on the "India-Yale Parliamentary Leadership Programme"

A strong eleven member multi-party delegation of the India-US Parliamentary Forum (IUFP) visited the US from June 20, 2009 to June 27, 2009. The visit was jointly organized by IUFP and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). The delegation to USA was led by IUFP Chair Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi (Spokesperson for the Indian National Congress) and comprised Mr. H D Kumaraswamy (Former Chief Minister of Karnataka and Senior Member of Janata Dal (Secular), Mr. Prakash Javadekar (Spokesperson for the Bharatiya Janata Party), Ms. Priya Dutt (Indian National Congress), Mr. Anurag Singh Thakur (Bharatiya Janata Party), Mr. Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo (Biju Janata Dal), Mr. Ijyaraj Singh (Indian National Congress), Mr. Jayant Chaudhury (Rashtriya Lok Dal), Ms. Shruti Choudhry (Indian National Congress), Ms. Mausam Benazir Noor (Indian National Congress) and Mr. Muhammed Hamdullah Sayeed (Indian National Congress). Mr. Harsh Pati Singhania, President, FICCI, Dr. Amit Mitra, Secretary General, FICCI and Mr. Ramesh Chandran, Executive Director, IUFP and Advisor, FICCI, also accompanied the delegation.

This year's Leadership Program covered topics such as: US Foreign Policy Toward Afghanistan-Pakistan; Religion and Politics; Economic Risks in the Global Economy; Poverty and Economic Development; India and Globalization; India in the Global Economy; India-China Economic Relations; Rule of Law and Governance in China; Reform of Higher Education in India; India's Priorities in the United Nations Framework; Climate Change and Energy Security in South Asia; Obama Administration and South Asia; Innovation and Economic Progress in Emerging Markets; US Response to the Global Financial Crisis; Negotiation and Strategy; Innovation; and Leadership Challenges.

In Washington, DC, the Leadership Program participants discussed India-US bilateral issues with senior US government officials from the Departments of Defense, Energy, Treasury and State as well as with the US trade representative, and members of the Senate and Congress. They also received briefings on foreign policy issues from scholars and advisers at the Brookings Institution, the Council on Foreign Relations and the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research.