Education Minister Anne Tolley and India's Minister for Human Resource Development, Mr Kapil Sibal, today renewed an agreement to strengthen and broaden New Zealand's education engagement with India.

"India is a key education market for New Zealand," says Mrs Tolley.

"Currently the twelfth largest economy in the world, India is projected to be the third largest by 2025, with a population of 1.1 billion.

"A formal education agreement such as this is a significant achievement for New Zealand considering the relative size and scale of our two nations and is testament to our high quality education system."

Tertiary Education Minister Steven Joyce says export education, New Zealand's fifth largest export earner, is vital to continuing growth of both the economy and the tertiary sector.

"It's essential that we maximise our opportunities in this area and that we are able to compete with other countries for international students in a sustainable way. This agreement is an important step in the right direction."

The agreement follows talks between New Zealand and India in Delhi earlier this year.

Collaborative projects and activities are planned in the areas of Technical and Vocational Education, Open and Distance Learning, Research Cooperation, Higher Education, Teacher Education and Development, and Quality Assurance and Qualifications Recognition.

New Zealand and India have also agreed to encourage institutional networking and exchange of officials and personnel.