Nirmala Sitharaman: MSMEs Drive India’s Growth at IEC 2025

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman spoke at the 11th edition of Times Network's India Economic Conclave (IEC 2025) on Wednesday and commended India's remarkable progress, its resilience during global economic uncertainties, and the commitment of the government to turn micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) into strong pillars of the economy.

Over the two days the conclave is taking place, the decision-makers, business leaders, economists, and world experts are going to gather in one place to talk about India's changing position in the geoeconomic map and the ways of keeping growth, though rapidly changing world.

Sitharaman in her speech insisted on India being a fast-growing economy in spite of global troubles. She quoted,

"China and the unipolar US market have been quite difficult for India to manage economically but nevertheless it has guaranteed its fast and steady growth which will be sustained year after year. It is high time that every stakeholder including political parties and critics see this as a positive step."

She also mentioned the government's policies under PM Modi with BJP focusing on MSMEs the most. According to Sitharaman, the industry is not only responsible for a large number of jobs created but also for the whole production process and thus their export contributions making MSMEs important again for India's Economic strategy.

About IEC 2025

IEC 2025 consists of more than 40 interactive sessions with the involvement of Union ministers, policymakers, members of the judiciary, economists, investors, technologists, and defense analysts. Debates will be about India's capabilities to handle global economic fluctuations and to be recognized as one of the winners in the race for the world's fastest-growing large economy.

The event is orchestrated by IDFC FIRST Bank whereas Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham takes the role of Knowledge Partner, and the World Gold Council is the Gold Investment Partner. Other partners are Radico, Axis, Max Life Insurance, Adani, Government of Uttar Pradesh, and NBCC, which cover sectors from insurance to infrastructure.

In the last ten years, the India Economic Conclave has become an influential national platform in economic discussion and decision making, providing not only insightful suggestions but also practical strategies for the country to consolidate its position in the world economy.