A one-day Joint India- NDB workshop on Enhancing NDB’s engagement with the India private and public sector was held here today.

The NDB is the first Multilateral Development Bank established by developing countries and emerging economies - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The mandate of the Bank is to mobilize resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS and other emerging economies and developing countries, complementing the existing efforts of multilateral and regional financial institutions for global growth and development. India is one of the founding members, holding 20% stake in the Bank. The Bank is headquartered in Shanghai.

As of now, NDB’s approved loan proportion to India is 28%, the second highest after China amongst the BRICS countries. States like Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Assam are receiving funding from the Bank. NDB is now keen on expanding its operation in other states and union territories in India. The Bank is also looking forward to expand its lending to private sector in India.

The workshop was co-organized by NDB and the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) Ministry of Finance, Government of India. The workshop was co-chaired by Shri K. Rajaraman, Additional Secretary, DEA, Mr. Xian Zhu, Vice President and Chief Operations Officer (COO) of NDB, and was attended by more than 100 representatives from Indian public and private sector, including Ms. Naina Lal Kidwai, Member of BRICS Business Council and Past President of FICCI.

Additional Secretary, Shri Rajaraman complimented NDB’s flexible business approach and quick turnaround for loan processing. He noted that India will require an investment of about USD 1.30 trillion in the infrastructure sector over the next five years, which will require innovative sources of funding, and that NDB can contribute towards meeting this funding requirement. He mentioned that NDB aims to provide local currency financing options in its member countries and expressed hope that NDB will be able to provide rupee financing in India soon. He encouraged infrastructure developers from both public and private sectors to explore funding opportunities from NDB to finance sustainable infrastructure projects such as urban water supply, solid waste management, smart cities, renewable energy, smart grid, etc.

Mr. Zhu gave an overview of NDB’s overall operations, as well as its operations in India. He stated that the international credit rating of AA+ is a demonstration of the strong growth and financial strength of the Bank. He affirmed that NDB aims to support the Indian public and private sector for infrastructure development through innovative means such as loans in local currency, guarantees, credit enhancement and equity investments. He added that Indian companies can also participate as contractors in NDB funded projects and can participate in providing consulting services under the project technical assistance.

Ms. Kidwai remarked that NDB can consider raising green bonds for financing water and sanitation projects and also provide credit enhancement to municipalities for raising bonds. Some of the priority areas that NDB can consider financing include transportation (metro, inter-city mobility), digital infrastructure, agriculture (irrigation, agricultural supply chain, storage) and social sector (education, healthcare, skilling). She also expressed hope that NDB may setup a regional center in India very soon to expand its local footprint in the country.

The workshop included a plenary session covering overview of NDB’s operations, non-sovereign lending policy and procurement opportunities under NDB financed projects. There was also an interactive Q&A session with the participants and one-on-one discussion with NDB officials on potential business opportunities in India.

Local currency financing can expand development bank support to Indian public and private infrastructure projects. The Bank will expand engagement with Indian public and private infrastructure projects using instruments such as loans in local currency, guarantees, credit enhancement and equity investments, facilitate non sovereign lending and participation by Indian contractors and consultants, and explore market measures like green bonds and municipal credit enhancement to support priority sectors including urban water, solid waste, smart cities, renewable energy, transportation, digital infrastructure, agriculture and social services.