Premier Scott Moe and Premier Danielle Smith are giving their support to former Saskatchewan leader Brad Wall to become Canada’s next high commissioner to India.The endorsement comes as Prime Minister Mark Carney and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi work to restore full diplomatic ties after months of tension between the two countries. Both governments said at the G7 summit that new envoys will be named soon, although Wall has not said publicly that he wants the post.Moe argued that Wall’s decade as Saskatchewan premier proves he can open doors abroad. "I see the reason and why I would be a proponent of someone like Brad Wall to be High Commissioner in India because of the effort and focus that he provided our province and our government under his tenure,” said Moe, with “province-to-nation relations, and province-industry relations and not just [India], but many countries in the world.”.Smith offered similar praise.“I’d be supportive of that. I think that Saskatchewan has done incredibly impressive work on expanding its footprint internationally through its trade offices, in particular India,” said Smith.Saskatchewan exports to India climbed to $1.3 billion in 2023, up 52% from 2013. The province now produces more than 25% of Canada’s shipments to India with only 3% of Canada’s population. Saskatchewan is also the world’s leading supplier of lentils and potash to India.Ottawa has not given a timeline on the appointment, but an announcement could come as early as July.
