In September 2026, the proposal to make Canada the European Union’s first-ever associate member sparked discussions about Canada bolstering ties with non-U.S. partners. While much of the attention was directed across the Atlantic, Canada's economic ties with Asia were also undergoing significant changes.
From October 12–17, 2026, Canada sent its largest trade delegation to India in more than three decades. Led by Global Affairs Canada, nearly 300 delegates travelled to Mumbai and Bengaluru to explore the Indian market and build business partnerships.
Alongside the Team Canada Trade Mission, the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada (APF Canada) supported five women entrepreneurs in agrifood, cleantech, energy, and healthtech as they look to expand into new markets in India.
As an APF Canada intern, I joined the delegation for business forums, meetings, and roundtable discussions. The experience gave me a chance to observe how Canada and India were restoring their relationship, which led me to reflect on a broader question: how can governments and businesses work together amid geopolitical uncertainty?
Why have Canada–India relations improved so rapidly?
At the opening event in Mumbai, Jeff David, Canada's consul general, spoke about how busy his team had been since his arrival the previous autumn. Over the past year, Canada and India have stepped up diplomatic engagement, with a series of high-level visits involving their prime ministers, foreign ministers, and trade ministers. Both governments are now working towards concluding a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) by the end of 2026.
Such progress would have been hard to imagine just three years ago. In 2023, the death of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen and prominent Sikh separatist leader, in a suburb of Vancouver triggered a major diplomatic crisis. At the time, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau publicly alleged that agents of the Indian government may have been involved in his killing, an accusation that New Delhi strongly denied.
The dispute brought bilateral relations to a historic low. Both countries expelled diplomats and trade negotiations were suspended. Relations began to recover in 2025, after Mark Carney became Canada’s prime minister.
A major reason for Canada's renewed engagement with India is the uncertainties surrounding U.S. trade policy. To reduce its dependence on the American market, Canada aims to double its exports to non-U.S. markets over the next decade and increase annual trade with India to C$70 billion by 2030.
For India, restoring relations with Canada aligns with its longstanding foreign policy approach of engaging with multiple powers to balance economic and security interests. This approach allows India to diversify its partnerships without becoming overly dependent on any single country. In this context, deeper economic co-operation with Canada would be consistent with India's efforts to preserve its strategic autonomy.
Entering the Indian market: localization and technology transfer
Diversifying trade is not just about mitigating risks. As Sara Wilshaw, Senior Assistant Deputy Minister and Chief Trade Commissioner at Global Affairs Canada, emphasized, it is also about positioning Canadian businesses in new markets and building long-term competitiveness.
This is particularly relevant in India’s vast and diverse market. Businesses need to consider not only what they can offer, but also how their goods and services can benefit the communities they hope to serve.
During our visit to Mumbai, we attended the opening of a women’s public washroom in the Tulsiwadi community. A Canadian company, Sankoya Technologies, had developed a waterless, off-grid waste treatment system to improve local sanitation. It was one example of how Canadian technology could respond to local needs, with the potential to be scaled up and applied in other remote areas.
However, localization can also be difficult for companies that depend on specialized knowledge to stay competitive. One medical software company told us it had spent 15 years and tens of millions of dollars developing its system, but had encountered overseas customers who wanted to build their own systems instead. As governments increasingly demand local ownership and data sovereignty, the conditions of technology transfer have become a major issue in international business.
Interpersonal relationships also matter when doing business in India. Building trust takes time, and securing a first contract can take up to four years. For Canadian businesses, the country’s large Indian diaspora can help bridge the gap between the two markets through its cultural knowledge and professional networks.
Do trade missions really work?
Given these challenges, what can a government-led trade mission do to help businesses enter a new market? Before the trip, I was curious to see what a weeklong trade mission to India could achieve.
Some evidence raises doubts about the efficacy of trade missions. A 2006 study by economists found no statistically significant increase in exports associated with earlier Team Canada trade missions.
However, according to Global Affairs Canada, this year's mission to India facilitated 34 commercial agreements worth nearly C$300 million. While these figures do not necessarily reflect the additional business generated by the mission, participating entrepreneurs revealed another immeasurably important benefit: the opportunity to build new business connections.
These connections are particularly valuable for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which made up most of the delegation. Unlike larger corporations with established international networks, smaller businesses often have fewer resources to explore overseas markets independently. To help bridge this gap, the mission organized industry-specific site visits and networking events across aerospace, clean technology, energy, information and communications technology, life sciences, and agriculture.
APF Canada supported inclusive trade through its program for women entrepreneurs on the Team Canada Trade Mission. One of our women entrepreneurs shared how much she had gained from the camaraderie within the delegation. Beyond the business opportunities, what she valued was how participants supported one another and worked together to solve business problems, sharing solutions to operation and sales challenges they each face as small businesses and startups.
These experiences suggest that the value of a trade mission is not always reflected in immediate sales revenue — but in stronger business resilience over time. They also raise broader questions about what trade statistics capture in the first place.
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, founder of biotechnology company Biocon, pointed out that revenues from cross-border digital services are not reflected in traditional trade figures. Meanwhile, AI is opening up new markets in digital trade, including system verification, drug discovery, and automated services. These technologies can also strengthen the competitiveness of existing industries.
Conclusion: Linking the public and the private
The operations of governments and businesses are becoming increasingly intertwined. Their relationship, once driven largely by market efficiency, is now shaped by security, technological competition, and geoeconomic strategies.
As Canada diversifies its trade ties and Canadian businesses explore new markets, understanding the opportunities and challenges that emerge may also help us adapt and find room for agency in the future of global development.
