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The government on Wednesday launched market access assistance worth ₹4,531 crore for exporters, under which financial assistance will be provided to participate in activities like international fairs and exhibitions.
This assistance is part of the ₹25,060 crore Export Promotion Mission and will be launched under the Market Access Initiative (MAI). Under the plan, ₹4,531 crore will be allocated over six years from FY 2025-31, with ₹500 crore earmarked for FY 2025-26.
MAI is the first scheme to be notified under the Export Promotion Mission and outlines a series of interventions aimed at providing structured financial and institutional support to Indian exporters in overseas markets.
Under the initiative, support will be extended to participation in international trade fairs and exhibitions, buyer-seller meetings (BSMs), mega reverse buyer-seller meetings (RBSMs) held in India, product showcases and global branding initiatives. These activities will be facilitated through government departments, export promotion councils, missions abroad and approved industry bodies.
Director General of Foreign Trade Ajay Bhadu said a visionary three to five year calendar of key market access programs will be prepared and approved in advance, allowing exporters and organizing agencies to plan participation well ahead of time and ensure continuity in market development efforts.
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Priority segments under the scheme include tourism and hospitality, healthcare travel, transport and logistics as well as agriculture, food and marine sectors, handicrafts, handloom and services like ayush, leather, sporting goods and toys.
To encourage wider participation, the scheme mandates a minimum 35% MSME presence in supported events, with special preference for new geographies and smaller markets to promote export diversification. The size of the delegation is set at a minimum of 50 participants, with flexibility depending on market conditions and strategic relevance.
Small exporters with export turnover up to ₹75 lakh in the previous year will be eligible for partial airfare support to encourage participation of new and first-time exporters.
However, the commerce ministry clarified that the 11 interventions under the Export Promotion Mission are not a direct response to higher US tariffs. Officials said tariffs of more than 50% cannot be effectively countered through incentive schemes and the mission focuses on removing long-standing structural barriers faced by exporters.
“The Export Promotion Mission is trying to solve long-term handicaps that exporters were facing,” an official said during the briefing. He said this approach is aimed at building competitiveness rather than reacting to short-term business disruptions.
Officials also said the plan includes monitoring mechanisms to avoid a situation where a small group of exporters benefit disproportionately, as was seen in some sectors in the past. He said the mission has adequate budgetary support and will not require additional allocation from the Finance Ministry.
To improve accountability and ensure market diversification, the Ministry is working on an index to assess how the Importer Exporter Code (IEC) of exporters has performed in the last five years. Data collection is ongoing, and the index can be used after a year to support exporters exploring new markets and encourage broader participation.