India, US renew triangular development cooperation in Asia and Africa

India and the United States on Friday signed the First Amendment to the Statement of Guiding Principles (SGP) on Triangular Cooperation for Global Development, mainly focused on Asia and Africa.

The amendment was signed by Joint Secretary in Development Partnership Administration, Ministry of External Affairs of India, Devyani Khobragade, and Mission Director for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in India, Mark Anthony White.

The SGP agreement, signed in November 2014, underscores the contribution of India-U.S. partnership to global stability and prosperity. It provides a framework for promoting cooperation between the two countries to meet the developmental aspirations of partner countries, particularly in Asia and Africa, the USAID said in a statement.

The First Amendment to the SGP Agreement extends the validity of the SGP agreement up-to 2021. It expands the scope of capacity building activities undertaken jointly by India and the US under this framework and also provides a consultative mechanism for joint biannual monitoring and review of activities undertaken under the SGP, the statement noted.

Under the agreement, India and the US will continue to offer capacity building assistance to partner countries in multiple sectors, focusing primarily on agriculture, regional connectivity, trade and investments, nutrition, health, clean and renewable energy, women empowerment, disaster preparedness, water, sanitation, education, and institution building, the agency said.

The agreement helps in fulfilling the joint commitment of both nations to work together and leverage their combined capacities to provide demand-driven development partnership, the statement added.