Italian bank Gruppo Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Indian infrastructure financing institute Srei.

The agreement will allow CDP and Srei to co-finance infrastructure transactions and to exchange ideas around best practice.

Meanwhile, Italian export credit agency Sace has signed an agreement with Yes Bank of India to help Italian exporters enter India across various sectors. Special attention will be paid to the agriculture and food sector, promoting Italian technology and products in the agri-value chain in India, a key focus area for the Indian government, says Sace in a statement.

Specific sub-sectors and value chain legs that will be part of the engagement are dairy, horticulture, feed, cereals, animal husbandry, storage, production, packaging and food safety amongst others.

“This will enable Indian companies to upgrade their technological operations and product quality, enabling them to compete successfully in the global market,” says Sace.

“Through the MoU, Indian corporates will have a chance to visit Italy and experience best-in-class technology at work and enable Italian-Indian companies to enter into strategic partnerships.”

The announcements come on the back of a two-day Italy-India business forum that took place in New Delhi and Mumbai last week, that was attended by Italian deputy minister of economic development, Ivan Scalfarotto.

The event was reported to have been attended by over 150 businesses, banks and universities. Scalfarotto said at the forum in India that the Joint Economic Commission (JEC) between the two countries will meet in Rome in May, after a gap of eight years. Indian commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman is expected to lead the delegation.