ADB plans to increase annual lending up to $4 bn to India

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Wednesday said it plans to raise its annual lending to India to a maximum of $4 billion to support the country to accelerate inclusive economic transformation.

ADB's programme in India will focus on three main pillars of activity during a five-year period -- boosting economic competitiveness to create more and well-paid jobs, improved access to infrastructure and services, and addressing climate change and improving climate resilience, the multilateral funding agency said in a statement.

"About 85 per cent of lending will be focused on transport, energy and urban infrastructure and services. Other finance will be aimed at public sector management, agriculture, natural resources and rural development as well as skills development and urban health."

The planned lending level, which includes private sector operations, compares with an average of $2.65 billion a year in loans extended in 2012-16.

It will be complemented by technical assistance to help undertake strategic studies, build capacities and prepare projects, increasing from the current average of $6.6 million in 2013-16.

ADB will also explore co-financing opportunities, including climate funds for relevant projects, it said.

"ADB's new five-year partnership with India supports the government's goal of inclusive and sustainable growth grounded by economic structural transformation and job creation with an increased focus on low-income states," said Kenichi Yokoyama, ADB Country Director in India.

"We aim to assist transformative investments, deliver holistic solutions removing sectoral boundaries and demonstrate high value addition of our assistance in terms of innovation, timeliness, efficiency and quality," he said.

India has been growing at an average rate of more than 7 per cent since 2012, putting it among the world's fastest growing large economies. It has also more than halved its poverty rate since 2004 to 21.9 per cent and has achieved most of the Millennium Development Goals.

"To accelerate such positive trends requires that the country create more high quality jobs, since half of India's workforce is based around agriculture, which is still marked by low productivity and incomes. Infrastructure continues to be a major bottleneck, in which ADB has identified an investment shortfall of $230 billion a year," it said.

ADB will help expand infrastructure networks for transport, energy and urban centres along economic corridors, enhance corridor business environment and address skills shortages to support industrialisation, it said.

"The second pillar will tackle infrastructure bottlenecks in lagging regions, improving municipal services for the urban poor, and supporting rural investments to close the income gap with cities. This will be supported by more efficient public sector management."

The third pillar of operation will promote sustainable natural resource use, higher renewable energy consumption, green corridors on high-voltage transmission lines, and ensure climate proofing in infrastructure projects, the statement noted.

--IANS

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