FDI in Multi-brand Retail Trade and the Safeguards

After a long and winding process, India opened the retail trade to foreign direct investment (RFDI) albeit with some caveats. The process, however, suggests that the case of RFDI provides a classic example of large global corporations succeeding in influencing public policy of developing countries and putting the regulatory system to stupor with the backing of powerful home governments. Starting from the mid-2000s when it started seeking to expand its global operations, there have been repeated attempts by Walmart to meet important relevant functionaries in India. Once the policy makers were convinced either on their own or due to the intense and sustained lobbying from abroad, the process has been unidirectional. The process also suggests that the protection offered by the safeguards could be illusory.