India keeping pace with sustainable development while building infrastructure projects: IIFCL MD

New Delhi: Under the chairmanship of India, the XIX Council Meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Interbank Consortium (SCO IBC) was held on Thursday in Goa. The meeting saw participation from representatives of member banks including Development Bank of Kazakhstan, China Development Bank, RSK Bank (Kyrgyzstan), Habib Bank Limited (Pakistan), VEB.RF (Russia), Savings bank of the Republic of Tajikistan Amonatbonk, and National Bank for Foreign Economic Activities of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

In his address as the Chair of the Meeting, P R Jaishankar, Managing Director of India Infrastructure Finance Company Limited (IIFCL), highlighted India’s achievements as the fifth largest economy in the world and its continued rise as a strong and vibrant democracy. He mentioned that India’s GDP growth in 2022 stood at 6.8 per cent, outperforming major economies like the US, United Kingdom, and Europe. He also highlighted India’s rapid digitization of the economy, sustainable development efforts, and significant growth in exports. India is keeping pace with Sustainable Development while building infrastructure projects, he added.

Jaishankar proposed four areas of cooperation for SCO IBC Members: 1. Expansion of cooperation: Efforts to be made towards taking initiatives to further expand cooperation among member banks, 2. Exchange of experience and skills: Emphasis on exchange of experience, skills, and personnel training among SCO IBC Member Banks, building on positive strides already made in this direction, 3. Electronic Collection of signed documents: Support for the initiative to form an Electronic Collection of the SCO IBC signed documents for the 20th anniversary of the Consortium, 4. Strengthening partnerships: Encouragement for member banks to strengthen partnerships within the framework of SCO IBC.