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Narendra Modi's our passage to India

For West Australians, the vast expanse of the Indian Ocean is an integral part of who we are. Our shorelines are littered with the wrecks of Europeans yet to master its navigation.

The Indian Ocean and the countries that share its waters are a massive part of our global history - social, cultural and commercial. Marco Polo, the East India Company, the Spice Trade, Batavia, Gandhi, apartheid, colonialism - the Indian Ocean story is our story.

Australia chairs the Indian Ocean Rim Association, the only regional forum linking most countries on the Indian Ocean rim. Last month, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop hosted IORA in Perth, a gathering of 26 nations to showcase Australia's commitment to the group's priority areas, including academic, science and technology co-operation.

An ocean of such history, cultural strength and diversity includes countries important to WA and countries whose importance to our future is sure to grow. No country has such potential for our State than India.

I have been curious about the constant references to India's "potential". And, with the extraordinary growth in China, and our export focus on supplying this massive growth, we often lose sight of what India may hold for us.

I had the good fortune to travel to India recently with my parliamentary colleagues Rita Saffioti and Sue Ellery. What is clear from our brief visit is that, if we treat India seriously and nurture our relationship, much is on offer - from us to India, and her to us.

What is also clear is that the new Prime Minister Narendra Modi has created a huge sense of opportunity and confidence in India. Mr Modi's current visit to Australia is of enormous significance and puts our country and State in a strong position to re-acquaint ourselves with Modi's great nation.

A quick look at our State's trade figures would suggest that the "Indian potential" is still to be taken up by our State. In 2009, our total export value to India was $7.6 billion. By 2013 this had declined substantially to $2.5 billion. During this time India, by ranking as our State's trading partner, had declined from third position to 10th position.

It is generally considered that the Indian economy has not reached its potential. In May, Modi was elected with an outright majority and a strong mandate of reform. India has the advantage of demography. Nearly 40 per cent of the population of 1.2 billion is younger than 30 and about a quarter of India's people live in towns and cities, but are inhibited by a range of factors that the Modi Government seems determined to address.

The challenge for our State is to absorb the massive scale that is India and translate that into a measure that allows us to deal strategically with this mighty nation. Modi has set his country the task of training 500 million Indians by 2022. At any point during the day in India, the equivalent of the entire population of Australia is riding on a train. It seems to me that with such scale we must not focus with too much of a critical eye on India's "potential" but stand in wonder of just what has been achieved in a country of such size and diversity.

It strikes me that the significant position that the Indian community has gained in the WA community has not yet been matched at the Government and economic level. As US academic Robert Kaplan has pointed out, the Indian Ocean will continue to be the centre of global energy politics, particularly as Australia increases its exports of LNG over decades. The Indian Ocean is much more than India but India will increase its presence not only across the region but worldwide.

As a State we have no jurisdiction in foreign affairs. However, we do have a role in pursuing and promoting the social, cultural and economic affairs of direct interest to our State. The Indian Ocean rim stands as our State's greatest opportunity over coming decades and our State needs to take a firmer grasp in the development of policy and relationships to ensure that we maximise these opportunities.

If we are to pursue Australia's priority areas in IORA, being academic, science and technology co-operation, the State Government needs to look at specific policy development in the region and consider specific ministerial responsibility for such development.

It just seems so obvious that the vast, historic and large countries that circle our Indian Ocean have much to gain by a deeper relationship - cultural and economic. While some of this will happen with the natural progression of migration, to maximise the opportunities in a competitive world we need to ensure that government policy and relationships are aligned.

Ben Wyatt is the WA shadow

treasurer