“Today marks a defining moment — not just for WASME, but for every Indian entrepreneur who has ever looked beyond the familiar and asked: where is the next great opportunity?
The presence of His Excellency Mr. Anthony Makabo — the High Commissioner of Solomon Islands to the Republic of India — at the WASME International Secretariat today is a powerful statement of intent. It signals that Solomon Islands does not merely welcome Indian investment — it actively, personally, and unreservedly seeks it.
At WASME, we have spent decades building bridges between nations. We have championed the cause of MSMEs on the floors of the United Nations. We have connected entrepreneurs across continents. But today, I can say with conviction — this is among the most compelling investment partnerships we have ever facilitated.
Solomon Islands is not a distant, unfamiliar frontier. It is a nation with 1.34 million square kilometres of ocean wealth, 90 per cent forest cover, preferential trade access to 2.9 billion consumers across 62 nations, and a government that has — with remarkable foresight — opened its most vital sectors to 100 per cent foreign ownership.
When His Excellency sits across the table from Indian entrepreneurs today — without protocol barriers, without intermediaries, without diplomatic distance — that is WASME’s mission made real. That is what we exist to do.
I am honoured to welcome His Excellency to WASME. And I am proud to say to India’s MSME community: the door to the Pacific is open. WASME will walk through it with you.”
— Dr. Sanjiv Layek Executive Secretary, World Association for Small and Medium Enterprises (WASME) May 2026 | Noida, India
