About Us India-Portugal Relations
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Embassy of India
Lisbon
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Historical Connections

  • Indo-Portuguese relations date back more than 500 years when an expedition led by Vasco da Gama, a Portuguese explorer, reached Calicut on the Malabar Coast in May 1498.Although the route from Europe to India via the Mediterranean and then overland towards to the Arabian Sea were well-known and frequented by Venetian and Arab traders, Vasco da Gama’s voyage to India (1497–1499AD) established the first direct sea route link between Europe and South Asia, sailing around the African continent. It enabled Portugal to gain access to the highly profitable spice markets of India and become a dominant trading power with a truly global outreach.

  • The Portuguese colonial era in India began in 1502 AD when the Portuguese Empire established the first European trading centre at Kollam (formerly Quilon), Kerala. Thereafter, they acquired several other enclaves on the western coast of India including Diu, Daman, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and, in 1510 AD, Goa, which subsequently became the capital of the Portuguese Empire in the Orient, stretching from Malacca in the east to the African possessions in contemporary Mozambique in the west.

  • Relations between India and Portugal began amicably in 1947 after India’s independence and diplomatic relations were established in 1949.

  • In 1974, India and Portugal signed a treaty recognising India’s sovereignty over Goa, Daman & Diu, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and related matters. With the signing of this treaty in New Delhi on December 31, 1974, diplomatic relations were re-established and an era of friendly bilateral relations began.

Present Condition

  • India’s relations with Portugal remain warm and friendly. Portugal has consistently supported India at multilateral fora, including for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). It supported India's non-permanent seat candidature for 2011-2012. In October 2005, Portugal extradited Abu Salem and Monica Bedi to India, becoming the first European Union country to extradite a person facing heinous charges in India. On October 9, 2015, Portugal became the first European and western country, and only the fourth one outside the East Asia Summit, to sign an MoU on the establishment of the Nalanda University in India. The decision to hold summit level meetings between India and the European Union was taken by the EU at the urging of the second Portuguese Presidency of the EU in 2000, during which the first India-EU Summit was held in Lisbon at the time of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s visit to the city.

  • Mr António Costa’s assumption of office as Prime Minister of Portugal in November 2015 gave a boost to India-Portugal relations. PM Costa is of Indian origin and was the first Head of Government of a western/developed country to hold a PIO (now OCI) card. His father Orlando da Costa grew up in Goa until the age of 17, and had close emotional ties with India. 

  • PM Costa visited India in January 2017 and was accompanied by 5 Ministers (the Ministers of Science & Technology, Economy, Culture, Defence, and Foreign Affairs) as well as the Secretary of State for Industry and a business delegation. His visit comprised four elements: A bilateral visit to New Delhi (January 7, 2017); attendance as Chief Guest at the Pravasi Bhartiya Divas in Bengaluru (January 8-9,2017); participation in the Vibrant Gujarat Summit in Gandhinagar (January 10, 2017) and a visit to Goa (January 11-12, 2017). He was awarded the Pravasi Bhartiya Samman Award, the highest honour conferred to the Indian diaspora.

  • During the visit, 8 MoUs were signed in the areas of Defence, Agriculture & Allied sectors, Marine Research & Resources, IT & Electronics, Startup Partnerships, Renewable Energy, a Visa Waiver Agreement for diplomatic passport holders, and the establishment of an ICCR Chair for Indian Studies at the University of Lisbon. A Joint Stampdepicting dances of both countries was released to commemorate the 500 years of diplomatic relations between India and Portugal. The Portuguese novel “Signo da Ira’’, set in Goa and authored by PM Costa’s father, was translated into English and also released during the visit.

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Portugal on June 24, 2017.During this first-ever bilateral visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Portugal, 11 MoUs were signed in the areas of Space, avoidance of double taxation, Nanotechnology, Biotechnology, Public Administration and Governance Reforms, Culture, Youth & Sports, Higher Education (IITs). Two countries also agreed to set up a Joint S&T Fund of 4 million Euros. An MoU is under negotiation between the Department of Science & Technology (DST) and the Portuguese Foundation of Science & Technology (FCT) for the launch of a 4-million-euro science and technology (S&T) fund.

High Level Visits

From India:

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Portugal on June 24, 2017 – the first-ever bilateral visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Portugal.
  • Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee visited Portugal for the first India-EU Summit in Lisbon in June, 2000.
  • President K. R. Narayanan visited Portugal in 1998.
  • President R. Venkataraman visited Portugal in 1990.

From Portugal:

  • Prime Minister António Costa paid a bilateral State Visit to India from January 6-12, 2017.
  • President Aníbal Cavaco Silva visited India in January 2007 on a bilateral visit.
  • Prime Minister José Sócrates visited India in December 2007 for the 8th India-EU Summit in New Delhi, during the third Portuguese Presidency of the EU.
  • Prime Minister Mário Soares visited India in 1984 to attend the funeral of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. After being elected President, he visited India again in 1992 as Chief Guest of the Republic Day celebrations that year.

Ministerial visits  from Portugal to India :

  • Visit of Dr. Paulo Portas, Foreign Minister, on March 5-8, 2013.
  • Dr. Rui Machete, Foreign Minister, on November 10-12, 2013 to attend the 11th

ASEM Foreign Ministers Meeting Affairs.

  • Dr. Jorge Moreira da Silva, Minister of Environment, Spacial Planning and Energy.
  • Mr. Artur Trindade, Secretary of State for Energy, to attend the 14th Delhi Sustainable Development Summit on February 5-8, 2014.
  • Secretary of State of Foreign Affairs Ms Teresa Ribeiro made a preparatory visit to  New  Delhi from November 23-24,2016 for PM Antonio Costa’s visit to India in Jan 2017.
  • Secretary of State for Tourism, Ms Ana Godinho, visited Mumbai and Goa from February 23-26 to participate in the India International Film Tourism Conclave (IIFTC) 2017 in Mumbai.
  • Visit of Minister of the Presidency and Administrative Reforms Maria Manuel Marques as Keynote Speaker in ICEGOV 2017 from March 7-9, 2017.
  • Secretary of State of Foreign Affairs Ms Teresa Ribeiro visited Ahmedabad to participate in the African Development Bank meeting on May 22-26, 2017.

Ministerial visits from India to Portugal:

  • Visit of Dr. Shashi Tharoor, Minister of State for External Affairs to attend the 5th Ministerial Conference of the Community of Democracies (CoD) in Lisbon on July 11-12, 2009.
  • Shri Vayalar Ravi, Minister for Overseas Indians Affairs from October 9-11, 2011.
  • Minister of State for External Affairs & Overseas Indian Affairs Mr V.K Singh visited Lisbon to attend 8th Horasis-India Meeting (July 3-4, 2016)
  • Minister of State for Science, Technology and Earth Sciences Shri Y. S Chowdary, accompanied by a high-level delegation, visited Portugal from April 19-23, 2017.
  • Minister of Science and Technology, Environment, Forest and Climate Change and Earth Sciences Dr Harsh Vardhan visited Portugal on September 7-8, 2017.
  • Minister of Commerce, Industry and Employment Mr Rajendra Shukla, State of Madhya Pradesh visited Portugal from November 19-23, 2017 to participate at India Business Seminars organised by Embassy of India in Lisbon.

Parliamentary Visits

  • Portugal reconstituted the cross-party ‘India-Portugal Parliamentary Friendship Group’ after the October 2015 Parliamentaryelections.
  • A 4-member Parliamentary delegation led by the Speaker of Portugal, Dr João Bosco Mota Amaral, visited India in 2003.
  • From India, a 16-member Parliamentary goodwill delegation led by the Minister for Parliamentary Affairs and Information & Broadcasting, Shri Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi, visited Portugal on November 6-7, 2007. A 12-member parliamentary goodwill delegation led by Minister of Parliamentary Affairs & Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers Shri Ananth Kumar visited Portugal from October 16-19, 2016 and held meetings with the President of the National Assembly Mr Eduardo Ferro Rodrigues, Secretary of State for European Affairs Margarida Marques and Secretary of State for Parliamentary Affairs Pedro Nunes.

 

Bilateral Agreements and MoUs

  • Bilateral Agreement on Trade, Economic, Industrial and Technical Cooperation (1977).
  • Agreement for Cooperation in Science and Technology signed in 1998.
  • Cooperation Agreement on Economic and Industrial Cooperation signed in 2000.
  • Bilateral Investment Protection Agreement (BIPA) signed in2000 and terminated by India on July 18, 2012. The competence to enter into a Bilateral Investment Treaty now lies only with the EU.
  • Agreement between the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) and the Portuguese Foreign Trade and Investment Agency (AICEP) in 1992.
  • Agreement between the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Portuguese Association of Industries (AIP) in 2007.
  • Treaty of Extradition (January, 2007).
  • Agreement on Social Security Convention (2013)
  • MoU on the establishment of Nalanda University (October, 2015).
  • Agreement on gainful employment of diplomatic spouses (July, 2016), entered into force from January 2017.
  • MoU in the field of Civil Aviation (Air Service agreement) between India and Portugal (December 8, 2016).
  • MoU on Marine Research and Resources (January 7, 2017).
  • MoU on cooperation in the fields of IT and Electronics (January 7, 2017).
  • MoU on Renewable Energy (January 7, 2017).
  • Visa waiver agreement for diplomatic passport holders between India and Portugal (January 7, 2017), entered into force from July 8, 2017.
  • MoU in Defence cooperation (January 7, 2017).
  • MoU between Invest India and Startup Portugal on Startup Partnerships (January 9, 2017).
  • MoU in the field of Agriculture and Allied Sectors (January 7, 2017).
  • MoU for establishment of the ICCR Chair in University of Lisbon (January 7, 2017), ICCR Chair arrived in September 2017.
  • Protocol of Cooperation in the field of Conservation and Preservation of Archives and Historical Documents between the National Archives of India and the Portuguese Ministry of Culture (May 17, 2017).
  • MoU between FICCI and CCIP establishing India-Portugal Joint Business Council (May 30, 2017).
  • MoU on Cooperation in Exploration and Uses of Outer Space for Peaceful Purposes (June 24, 2017).
  • Protocol amending Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement for avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income (June 24, 2017).
  • MoU on Public Administration and Governance Reforms (June 24, 2017).
  • MoU on Cultural Cooperation (June 24, 2017).
  • MoU on Youth and Sports Affairs (June 24, 2017).
  • MoU between 3 IITs and the Portuguese Science and Technology Foundation (FCT) on cooperation in the fields of Higher Education and Scientific Research (June 24, 2017).
  • MoU on Biotechnology & Tissue engineering between the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBC) Bangaluru and the University of Minho (June 24, 2017).
  • MoU on Nanotechnology between the Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory (INL) Braga and the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Bangalore (June 24, 2017).
  • MoU between the PIBHub (Portugal India Business Hub) and AICEP (Portuguese Trade and Investment Promotion agency) (June 24, 2017).
  • MoU between the PIBHub and the Reira Group/Goa Desk (June 24, 2017).
  • MoU between the PIBHub and the Indian Chamber of Commerce (June 24, 2017).
  • MoU between WAPCOS Ltd (PSU under the Ministry of Water Resources) and águas de Portugal (ADP) on December 7, 2017.

 

Foreign Office Consultations and Joint Economic Committees

  • The fourth round of Foreign Office Consultations was held in Lisbon on December 13, 2016 between Ms Sujata Mehta, Secretary (West), MEA and Mr Francisco Duarte Lopes, Director-General, Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

  • The third India-Portugal Joint Economic Committee (JEC) on Economic Matters was held in New Delhi in December 2006. Ten years later, Deputy Director General Virgínia Pina of the Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ms Anita Pravin, Joint Secretary (FT-Europe) of the Department of Commerce, met on November 22, 2016 in New Delhi to discuss the revival of the JEC.

  • The fourth session of the India-Portugal JEC on Economic Matters was held in Lisbon on May 30, 2017. It was led by Ms Anita Pravin, Joint Secretary (FT-Europe) of the Department of Commerce and Ms Virginia Pina, Deputy Director General, Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Both sides discussed a roadmap for boosting bilateral and third-county trade and investment cooperation. An MoU was signed on this occasion between the Federation of Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) and the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce & Industry (CCIP) for exchanges of trade missions and formation of the India-Portugal Joint Business Council (IPJBC).

 

UN Security Council and Cooperation in Multilateral Fora

  • India and Portugal have a long-standing track record of reciprocal support arrangements for candidatures at the United Nations and other multilateral forums.

  • Both countries served on the UNSC in a non-permanent capacity during 2011-2012 and extended valuable cooperation to each other.

  • During 2017, Portugal supported India’s candidature (re-election) for the biennial election (2018-19) in the Council of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) under Category 'B'; the re-election of Judge Dr Dalveer Bhandari for the term 2018-27 in the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the Hague; and India’s bid for UNESCO’s Executive Board membership and the selection of Ahmedabad as a UNESCO heritage city.

 

Multilateral Export Control Regimes

Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) and the Wassenaar Arrangement

  • Portugal, which joined MTCR in 1992, supported India’s entry into the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) in June 2016.

  • India joined the Wassenaar Arrangement as its 42nd member on December 8, 2017. The Wassenaar Arrangement is a global regime for Export Control of Conventional Arms and Dual-Use Goods and Technologies. Portugal is also a member state.

  • India has joined the Australia Group(AG) on January 19,2018 as its 43rd Member. The Australia Group has decided to admit India as the Group’s 43rd participant through consensus decision as Portugal is also the member of the AG.

Trade and Investment

  • In 2016-17, bilateral trade reached a total value of USD 812.34 million. Indian exports stood at USD 671.17 million and Portuguese exports at USD 141.16 million. The trade balance has consistently been in India’s favour.

  • Bilateral trade increased by 120.15 million over the previous year’s figure of 692.19 million, registering an increase of 17.36%.

Year-wise bilateral trade figures from 2012-13 to 2016-17(in USD million):  
                              

Year
(April-March)

2012-2013

2013-2014

2014-2015

2015-2016

2016-17

EXPORTS

528.46

647.00

636.43

589.64

671.17

IMPORTS

378.21

349.98

145.05

102.55

141.16

TOTAL TRADE

906.67

1,000.00

781.48

692.19

812.34

% GROWTH

9.38

6.65

-19.18

-11.43

17.36

(Source:DGFT, India)

    • Major exports from India: Textiles and apparels including readymade garments; agriculture products; metals; chemicals; plastic and rubber; footwear; machinery and appliances; leather and its articles; vehicles and other transport materials.

    • Major exports from Portugal: Machinery and appliances; metals; minerals; plastic and rubber; chemicals; textiles and apparels; leather; paper and pulp; wood and cork; optical and precision instruments.

    • Market access for Agriculture Products: Portuguese Secretary of State for the Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Teresa Ribeiro visited India in November 2016 to hold preparatory meeting for the Portuguese PM’s visit to India. During her visit to Delhi, she raised the issue of market access to Portuguese meat, apples and pears with our Agriculture Minister. Our Minister, requested access to Indian litchi exports, in turn. During Foreign Office Consultations in December 2016, the Portuguese government conveyed that Portugal was very open to litchi exports from India and clarified that there were no national or EU restrictions on litchi imports from India.

    • During the JEC meeting on May 30, 2017, the Portuguese side expressed keen interest in exporting apples, pears, pork, and poultry/meat products to India and sought clarifications about Indian health certification requirements.

    • At the JEC meeting, two business platforms were launched – (i) the Portugal-India Business Hub (PIBHub), a business diaspora hub for expanding Indian business ties with Lusophone countries, (ii) the India-Portugal Joint Business Council between FICCI and CCIP, to enhance India-Portugal bilateral trade and investment.

    • Under the framework of MoUs signed during PM Costa’s visit to India (in Agriculture & Allied Sectors, IT & Electronics and Renewable Energy), the first meetings of the JWGs on Renewable Energy (February 27, 2018), and Agriculture & Allied sector(Jan 11, 2018), and IT and Electronics (Jan 22, 2018) were held as a follow up to the signed MOUs. The first meeting of Senior Consultative Body of Administrative Modernisation and Good Governance was held  in Lisbon from May 8-9, 2018. The meeting was co-chaired by Mr K.V Eapen, Secretary, Dept. of Administrative Reforms and Public Grivances (DARPG) and Mr Pedro Dias Silva, CEO & President of Administrative Modernisation Agency (AMA) Portugal.

    • Under the signed MoU between Invest India and Startup Portugal for startup partnerships during PM Costa’s visit to India in January 2017, the India Portugal Startup Hub (IPSH) was launched on June 24 during PM Modi’s visit to Portugal. Invest India participated in the Web Summit in Lisbon on November 6-9, 2017 and discussed the roadmap for implementation of the signed MoU. The Embassy of India in Lisbon also supported a networking event organised by PIBHub to connect Indian Startups with the Portuguese innovation ecosystem.

    • A high-level delegation from the Goa Government led by the Chief Secretary of Goa visited Portugal from February 5-9,2018 and held the discussion  with ADP for establishing the possible commercial collaboration in water and waste management sector. The visiting Goa delegation also visited some waste and water management plants/sites in Portugal. Aguas de Portugal (ADP) visited Goa from May 28- June 1, 2018 to explore possible collaboration with PWD Goa and Imagine Panji Smart city project in water management projects.

    Portuguese Investments in India

    • Portugal ranks 55thin Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into India with total FDI inflows amounting to US$ 42.62 million (as of 31 March 2016).

    • Portuguese investments in India are: Martifer in the metals sector; Efacec in Industrial Machinery, Equipment & Tools sector; Euroamer Garuda, a subsidiary of Euroamer investments in the Real Estate sector in Bangalore; Sodecia in 2011 acquired Automotive Ancillary Services Group; Petrotec Group investments focused on production, marketing and providing technical support for oil industry distribution and retail areas;   Birla-Visa Beira JV’s investment in optical fiber optics in Odisa/West Bengal states, Feedback Brisa Highways OMT Private Limited (FBH), a Joint Venture between Feedback Infra Private Limited and Brisa,Auto-Estradas de Portugal to install efficient toll and safety systems on Indian roads;and Martifer Solar’sJoint VentureInspira Martifer Solar, engaged in a rooftop solar project in Mahabaleshwar with a capacity of 350 kW. Martifer Solar has also commissioned a 25 MW solar power plant in Gujarat.

    • Potential areas where Portuguese expertise could be leveraged for Indian development goals are: Infrastructure & Construction (e.g. e-tolls), Renewable Energy (especially solar and wind power), Real Estate, Footwear, Textiles, Tourism & Hospitality, Defence & Aerospace, IT & Electronics, Water & Waste management, Startups, and Agriculture & Food Processing.

          Indian Investments in Portugal

    • Although precise figures are not available, Indian investments in Portugal are in the range of USD 150 million.

    • Major Indian investments in Portugal include: Vindya Telelinks Ltd, a JV between the Birla group and Portugal’s Visabeira Group for optical fibres and telecom  operations in India; theIndian Hotelier Mr Nesamani Maran N. Muthu of the MGM Group invested in three hotels in the Algarve region; TATA Aerosole in footwear industry, Saptashva Solar, a subsidiary of XL Telecom & Energy in the renewable energy sector; TCS Iberoamerica, a IT and software services project; Sakthi Auto, an automotive subsidiary of Sakthi Sugars, Chennai, in an auto-component plant in águeda;  and Zomato  invested in Portugal.

    • 24 Indians have made investments under the Portuguese Golden Visa Scheme as of December 2016.Portugal launched the Golden Visa scheme in October 2012 to attract foreign investments into Portugal to revive the economy. Under the scheme, foreign investors may receive a Residency Permit in Portugal for five years, renewable for successive periods of two years and possible permanent residency permit or even Portuguese citizenship after six years by naturalization process, if the entrepreneur invests a minimum of €1 million through capital transfer, creates 10 jobs or acquires real estate property of €500,000 (or €300,000 for properties more than 30 years old or located in areas of urban renovation). Regular transfers of funds above €1 million; €350,000 for research activities; €250,000 for artistic or cultural activities; or €500,000 for the capitalisation of small and medium size companies may also allow investors to qualify for a Residency Permit.

    • The Embassy organised two series of India Business Seminars in 2017. The first took place in March, 2017 in Lisbon and Porto, where representatives of CII, Invest India, representatives of the States of Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh as well as Indian tax and legal experts participated. The speakers made presentations on business and investment opportunities in India, focusing in particular on the two States represented. In the second series, the Embassy organised India Business Seminars in Portimão (in the Algarve), Lisbon and Porto on November 20-22,2017 with the participation of CII, EY (formerly Ernst & Young) tax experts on Indian tax and legal matters, and a 4-member delegation led by Shri Rajendra Shukla, Minister of Commerce, Industry and Employment of the Government of Madhya Pradesh. The speakers presented business and investment opportunities available in India, especially in the State of Madhya Pradesh.

    • On December 7, 2018 in Lisbon, the Indian PSU WAPCOS signed an MoU with águas de Portugal (AdP) for possible collaboration in the water sector. The MoU was signed by Executive Director of WAPCOS, Mr Anupam Mishra, and President of ADP, Mr Cláudio de Jesus, in the presence of the Portuguese Minister of Environment, Mr João Pedro Matos Fernandes, and the Ambassador of India to Portugal, Mrs K. Nandini Singla. This comes after the visit of a high-level ADP delegation to India to participate in the Water Week (October 10-14, 2017) organised by the Ministry of Water Resources and discuss possible collaboration with WAPCOS.

    • Embassy in association with the Portuguese Tour & Travel Operator Association (APAVT) organised India Tourism Roadshows in Lisbon and Porto in March 2018 to promote India as niche tourist destination in Portuguese market. The state of Kerala was the focus state, represented by Director, Kerala Tourism. The Mission in association with India Tourism Paris office also participated in BTL Lisbon from February 28- March 4, 2018.

    Defence & Aerospace

    • India and Portugal signed the first-ever MoU in defence cooperation during Portuguese PM Costa’s visit to India in January 2017. The Portuguese defence industry organisation idD – Plataforma das Indústrias de Defesa Nacionais anchored a defence delegation of 8 Portuguese defence companies during PM Costa’s visit to India and held meetings with Indian defence companies, organised by FICCI. The Embassy of India in Lisbon organised a follow-up meeting in February 2017 with these 8 defence companies and others to discuss their participation in the ‘Make in India’ programme.

    • There are over 370 Portuguese defence companies under the idD umbrella. Most of them have niche technologies in sectors like AUVs (Autonomous Underwater Vehicles), ammunition destruction through gas, ship building, naval communication systems/equipment, navigational systems, robotics and automation, aeronautics, military clothing, etc. Portugal is also a NATO member. 

    • There have been study visits from India's National Development Council (NDC) to Portugal and goodwill visits of Indian naval ships. The INS Delhi and the INS Beas, led by the Commander of the Western Naval Fleet, visited Portugal in November 2009 and the INS Tarangini in October 2015. The INS Tarkash also paid a goodwill visit in Lisbon on May 14-17, 2017, during which bilateral meetings were held between the two navies. INS Tanrangini visited second time to Port of Lisbon for its LOKAYAN tour from June 4-7,2018.

    • 16-member Portuguese  defence companies delegation anchored by idD participated in DEFEXPO-2018 in Kancheepuram(Chennai) from April 11-14,2018 and held the meetings with Indian Ministry of Defence officials including Defence Secretary, and Indian Defence PSUs and B2B meetings, organised by FICCI, with  Indian defence companies. The Portuguese Defence Minister was supposed to attend DEFEXPO-2018 but he was not able to travel due to the last minute cancellation of Lufthansa flight.

     

    Science & Technology

    • An Agreement for Cooperation in Science and Technology was signed in December 1998, establishing the Indo-Portuguese Joint Science & Technology Committee (JSTC) to prepare periodical Programme of Cooperation. Mutually agreed priority areas for cooperation between the two sides are;-Ocean Science & Technology;Biotechnology and Human Health; Materials Science including Nanotechnology;Chemical Sciences; and Engineering Sciences including ICT.

    • The Joint Science and Technology Committee held its fifth session in Lisbon on March 13-14, 2017 and concluded a Programme of Cooperation. The meeting was co-chaired by Dr Arabinda Mitra, Advisor and Head of International Cooperation, Department of Science & Technology (DST) from India and, from the Portuguese side, Dra Isabel Ribeiro, FCT Board Member. The visiting Indian JSTC delegation also met the Portuguese Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education, Dr Manuel Heitor. In the Programme of Cooperation (POC),  15 projects were selected for co-financing /joint funding during  2017-2019. 

    • Three workshops were planned to organise in next two years: a workshop on marine science was held in July 2017 in Lisbon on the margins of Ciência 2017; the  workshop on tissue engineering was also held by 3Bs Institute, University of Minho in Indian Instittue of Technology Kharagpur in the month of February,2018. The workshop on nano-technology would be held later this year. 

    • Minister of State for Science, Technology and Earth Sciences Shri Y. S Chowdary, accompanied by a high-level delegation, visited Portugal from April 19-23, 2017 to participate in the Atlantic International Research (AIR) meeting in the Azores islands in Portugal. Minister Chowdary held meetings with the Portuguese Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education, Dr Manuel Heitor, to discuss bilateral S&T cooperation. Minister Chowdary also visited the Institute of Systems & Robotics of the Instituto Superior Técnico (IST) to discuss ways of enhancing bilateral collaboration in oceanography and interact with Indian researchers working in the IST.

    • In July 2017, in its annual science meeting, Ciência 2017, Portugal for the first time invited a guest country, giving that honour to India. The Indian delegation at Ciência 2017 included senior scientists from ISRO, NIO and NIOT. A joint Indo-Portuguese workshop on marine / ocean sciences was conducted on the side-lines of Ciência 2017.

    • Minister of Science and Technology, Environment, Forest and Climate Change and Earth Sciences Dr Harsh Vardhan visited Portugal on September 7-8, 2017, calling on PM António Costa and holding meeting with Minister of Science, Technology & Higher Education Dr Manuel Heitor to discuss bilateral S&T Cooperation. Minister Harsh Vardhan also participated in the Oceans Meeting 2017.

    • Shri S. Rakesh, CMD of ANTRIX and Dr S.S.C. Shenoi, Director of the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) participated in the first Working Group Meeting held in Lisbon on July 14, 2017 to discuss the establishment of the AIR Centre. Dr T.M. Balakrishnan Nair, Scientist-F of the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad, represented India in the second meeting held on November 20-21 in Florianopolis, Brazil. Two-member delegation from M/s Tekever visited India from February 12-17,2018 and held meetings with ANTRIX(ISRO), INCOIS, Chennai and Ananth Technology in Chennai to establish possible collaboration in S&T and Research fields.

    Education and E-Governance

    • The Centre for Indian Studies at the University of Lisbon was inaugurated in April 2016 by Portuguese Minister of Foreign Affairs Augusto Santos Silva. It is the first centre in any university or think tank in Portugal dedicated to the study of India. The Centre hosts a Distinguished Lecture series on art, culture, foreign policy, economy and international relations. It also offers Hindi language learning, with 240 Portuguese students so far enrolled. The Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) also offers 2 scholarships for a Master’s Degree. The Kendriya Hindi Sansthan in Agra provided 3 scholarships to study Hindi in India to Portuguese students last year. The Centre of Indian Studies launched online Hindi-Portuguese dictionary in 2017 sponsored by ICCR, which can be used in all Lusophone countries for the promotion of Hindi. Ayush has also approved the grant of 5 Scholarships for 2017-18 to Portuguese nationals for pursuing courses in Ayurveda and Yoga in Indian institutes. The Centre for Indian Study at the University of Lisbon in association with Embassy of India in Lisbon organised a Conference  on the theme ‘Indian Ocean:-Global Connections  from April 17-18, 2018 where distinguished speakers from India participated.

    • The Portuguese Minister of the Presidency and Administrative Reforms Maria Manuel Marques was the Keynote Speaker in the International Conference on Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance (ICEGOV) 2017, organised by the Indian Ministry of Electronics and IT, held on March 7-9, 2017. The day before the conference, on March 6, 2017, Minister Marques held a bilateral meeting with Minister of Law & Justice and Electronics & IT, Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad, and extended an invitation to him to visit Portugal.

    • A 3-member Portuguese delegation led by Secretary of State of Foreign Affairs Ms Teresa Ribeiro visited Ahmedabad to participate in the African Development Bank meeting on May 22-26, 2017. Ms Ribeiro also met Minister of State for Finance Shri Arjun Ram Meghwal to discuss bilateral relations.

    • A 10-member youth delegation visited Portugal from January 28 to February 4, 2018. This visit came under the framework of the MoU in the field of Youth and Sport Affairs between India and Portugal, signed during PM Modi’s visit in June 2017. The visit will serve to reinforce ties between the participants by enabling them to meet their respective counterparts.

     

    Consular Affairs

    • An Agreement on Visa Exemption for holders of diplomatic passports was signed on January 7, 2017 and entered into force on July 8, 2017.

    • An MoU on Paid Employment by Dependents of Diplomatic, Administrative and Technical Staff wassigned between Portugal and India in July 2016. It entered into force in January 2017.

    • The Embassy of India in Lisbon issued3,658 visas in 2017 on an average of more than 300 Visas per month. According to the Indian Ministry of Tourism, 44,616 Portuguese tourists visited India in 2015. According to the Indian immigration authorities, India attracts an average of 1,000 Portuguese tourists under the ETA visa scheme during 2017.

    • The Government of India has expanded the existing E-tourist visa scheme (ETV) to e-Visa, effective from April 1, 2017. The introduction of the 60-days double entry e-Visa for business and tourist purposes and the triple entry option for medical e-Visa is expected to boost the number of Portuguese visitors to India. The ETV facility has been extended to Portuguese nationals since November 2014. The number of visas being issued by the Embassy has seen a slight decrease since the introduction of the ETV/e-Visa scheme. 

     

    Culture, Tourism and Sports

    • A Cultural Cooperation Agreement was signed between India and Portugal in 1980. Several Cultural Exchange Programmes (CEPs) have been implemented. A large number of cultural exchanges, including cultural performances, seminars, etc. have been organised in Portugal through the ICCR in recent years. 

    • On the cultural front,the Embassy organised a series of events in 2017, such as the Jiya dance festival organised at the Oriente Foundation in collaboration with the Casa de Goa and the Nakshatra Production on 29 April, 2017; the Chhau dance performance in Lumiar on May 2, 2017 sponsored by the ICCR and performances of the dance drama Siddhartha in Lisbon (October 29), Lagos (October 31) and Porto (November 2) by the Art Vision group as part of the India@70 celebrations. India also participated in the Finisterra Arrabida Film Arts and Tourism Festival on May 23-26, 2017 as a guest country showcasing its unique cultural diversity. The Embassy of India participated in the 3rd edition of the ‘Festival de Setembro’ organised by the Ourém Municipality on September 8-10, during which a Bollywood film show and workshop was organised.  The Embassy also participated in the 3rd Encontro Multicultural festival organised by the Municipality of Albufeira in southern Portugal on June 2,2017 where a consular camp was also organised.

    • The Mission in association with India-Portugal Friendship Association(AAPI) organised the series of cultural events/celebration of Indian festivals in Portugal such as Holi celebration in Lisbon and Porto, Southern Street band’s performance in Porto and  Lisbon,etc. These events were sponsored by Ministry of Culture, Govt of India. 

    • A Protocol on Cooperation in the Field of Archives between India and Portugal was signed on March 11, 2014 in New Delhi. After it lapsed in March 2017, a new Agreement was signed in Lisbon on May 17, 2017 between the National Archives of India and the Directorate-General for Books, Archives and Libraries of Portugal during the visit on May 14-17 by a two-member delegation led by Director-General Mr Raghvendra Singh, National Archives of India.

    • The Portuguese Secretary of State for Tourism, Ms Ana Godinho, visited Mumbai and Goa from February 23-26 to participate in the India International Film Tourism Conclave (IIFTC) 2017 in Mumbai. She also held a meeting with representatives of the Indian tourism and hospitality industry in Mumbai, inviting them to take advantage of Portugal’s recent growth in tourism by, for instance, investing in Portuguese flagship programmes like ‘Revive’ that seek to renovate and transform heritage buildings into luxury resorts.

    • 10 Indian students from the Salgaocar Institute of International Hospitality Education in Goa visited various Portuguese Hospitality institutes for familiarisation for ten days in 2017. The second batch of 12 students from the same institute are in Portugal from May 20 to June 2, 2018 for their training in hospitality sector.

    • The U-17 Indian National Football team visited Portugal in April 2017 as part of a Europe tour (to Spain, Italy, Portugal and Hungary). India hosted the U-17 FIFA World Cup in October 2017 successfully.

    • The Embassy of India in Lisbonin association with the Portuguese Yoga Confederation (headed by Padma Shri Awardee Jagat Guru Amrata Suryananda Maha Raja, President of the Yoga Samkhya Institute) commemorated the third International Day of Yoga with week-long celebrations, starting with a large event on June 21,2017 at the Comunidade Hindu de Portugal (CHP) premises in Lisbon, in which around 500 people performed yoga. The Mission also organised a yoga session for school students and teachers on the occasion of the International Day of Yoga (IDY) at the Carlucci American International School in Lisbon. On June 24, a Yoga Samkhya Conference was organised at the University of Lisbon with a yoga demonstration and an Omkara choir organised by the Portuguese Yoga Confederation. On June 25, 2017, the IDY was celebrated at the Moniz Pereira Municipal Stadium where several local dignitaries and representatives of different religious communities in Portugal spoke and around 1,000 people performed yoga together.

     

    The Indian Community in Portugal

    • Portugal has a large Indian origin diaspora with the community in Portugal estimated at around 67,000 individuals. According to Portuguese government figures, in 2016 (till December 31,2016), there were 7,244 Indian nationals in Portugal. The Indian community migrated to Portugal in two streams: first directly from India in smaller numbers from Goa, Daman and Diu before 1961, and then in a pronounced flow in the seventies, mostly of Gujaratis from Mozambique and Angola when Portugal relinquished its colonial rule there and the resultant civil wars made the countries increasingly unsafe. The Indian diaspora youth from Portugal have being participating in the ‘Know India’ Programme (two persons attended in 2016 and one in 2017) and the ‘Know Goa’ Programme sponsored by the Goa Government (three persons visited Goa in 2016 to reconnect with their roots).

    • The Casa de Goa celebrated its 30th anniversary on May 6, 2017 and organised the International Conference on ‘Sustainable Development in Goa in the 21st Century’. PM Costa addressed the Conference where he was accorded honorary membership of the Casa de Goa.  PM Costa also attended an Indian cultural and community event at the Radha Krishna Temple organised by the CHP on May 16, 2017.

    • On September 25, the Embassy, in association with the University of Lisbon, commemorated the 100th birth anniversary of Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay by organising a Panel Discussion on ‘Transforming India through People’s Empowerment’. On November 15, 2017, Hindi Divas was celebrated at the University of Lisbon with the inauguration of an online Hindi-Portuguese dictionary, several cultural events and a donation of Hindi books to the Centre of India Studies.

    As on May 18, 2018