On Wednesday November 27th, Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce in association with the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, the Canada Israel Chamber of Commerce, and the City of Markham held a business breakfast at the Hilton Markham.

The morning opened with remarks from the Consul General of Israel DJ Schneeweiss, Consul General of India Akhilesh Mishra, and His Worship Frank Scarpitti, Mayor of Markham. 

Consul Generals emphasized the unique and growing relations between Israel and India across a number of sectors, including research and development, water and energy collaborations, military and security cooperation, educational and academic partnerships, growing tourism from both countries, and much more.  The mayor has participated in both Indian and Israeli trade missions, and sees Markham as uniquely situated as a hub for partnership between Canada, Israel and India given the demographics of the city.

The event featured Noam Ben Ozer, CEO and Founder, and Anchit Gupta, Director of Business Development, from Focal Energy, a clean-tech Israeli company with all of its operations in India.  They spoke to the challenging, but rewarding, experience of commencing business in India. 

Gupta stated “Renewable energy in India is not implemented because it’s a desirable option, but because it is a necessity.  It is the only way to meet the growing energy needs of the population.” 

Ben Ozer spoke to some of the reasons why Focal Energy has been successful, where so many other companies with more capital have failed.  He identified their conservative approach to growth and development, and their investment in a qualified management team based locally, as well as their strong relationships with local small-scale suppliers. 

The event “The India Israel Opportunity” was at capacity with close to 70 people in attendance, with an audience of primarily business leadership in the India, Jewish and Israeli communities.  Other partners in the event included the Israel Economic Mission to Canada, the Rajasthan Association of North America, and Walter Arbib and Surjit Babra of Skylink Group.