Sydney (Australia): Continuing is Australia tour, minister Nara Lokesh met New South Wales (NSW) Premier Chris Minns and sought to strengthen bilateral cooperation between Andhra Pradesh and NSW in advanced manufacturing, startups, and green technologies.

Lokesh proposed establishing an ‘Andhra Pradesh–New South Wales Innovation and Industry Partnership’ to promote collaboration in innovation, trade and skill development, supported by a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between both governments. He suggested linking NSW’s innovation clusters with the upcoming innovation and startup hubs in Visakhapatnam, Amaravati, and Anantapur.

The minister invited NSW-based companies in renewable energy, medtech, agritech, and logistics to invest in Andhra Pradesh’s industrial corridors. He also encouraged collaboration between NSW universities and Andhra Pradesh educational institutions in AI, clean technology, and sustainable infrastructure R&D.

Lokesh extended an invitation to Premier Minns to send a business delegation to the Partnership Summit 2025 in Visakhapatnam and sought cooperation to include the Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board (APEDB) in NSW’s Asia-Pacific trade initiatives. He also suggested exploring joint incubation programmes between NSW innovation agencies and Ratan Tata Innovation Hubs in Andhra Pradesh. NSW Minister for Innovation, Science, and Technology Anoulack Chanthivong also attended the meeting.