OREANDA-NEWS. On September 1, Special Representative for Commercial and Business Affairs Ziad Haider will visit Mumbai, India to discuss strong intellectual property (IP) protection as a key element of the U.S.-India economic relationship.

Special Representative Haider is scheduled to meet with the Motion Picture Association of America-India and the Film & Television Producers Guild of India and visit Yash Raj Films studio to discuss shared interests and additional measures needed to protect both our countries' dynamic film industries. He will discuss patent protection at a meeting with representatives from the Organization of Pharmaceutical Producers of India.

He will also meet with members of the U.S.-India Importers’ Council to discuss the increasing opportunities in India for U.S. products and services, as well as with key U.S. investors in India.

Special Representative Haider’s visit to Mumbai follows on his participation earlier this week in the second Strategic and Commercial Dialogue (S&CD) in New Delhi. A key theme in the S&CD's commercial track discussions was forging a partnership on innovation and entrepreneurship that, in turn, relies on strong IP protections. Notably, a Statement of Intent was signed by NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India) CEO Dr. Amitabh Kant and U.S. Ambassador to India Richard Verma that designated India as the co-host for the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) in 2017. GES 2017 will be a key theme of discussion during the Mumbai visit.