NDB provides financial assistance of about $5 billion to BRICS countries

Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday praised BRICS’s New Development Bank for taking a more “sustainable and inclusive approach” and for establishing itself as a “credible” global financial institution.

She said while attending the 5 annual meet of Board of Governors of NDB through video-conference.

The Union Finance Minister appreciated NDB’s effort on fast tracking of financial assistance of about $5 billion to BRICS countries including Emergency Assistance of $1 billion to India to combat COVID-19 pandemic. She also suggested that assistance under this facility be enhanced to $10 billion.

She talked about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s initiative of creating a COVID-19 Emergency Fund and India’s efforts in supplying critical medicine to the needy countries to tackle the COVID-19. The Finance Minister of Brazil thanked India for the timely help it received from India in the form of critical drugs.

Sitharaman also outlined various measures taken in India to respond to the COVID-19, includes, allocation of $2 Billion (Rs 15,000 crore) by the Indian government for strengthening the healthcare system; announcement of a scheme of social support measures amounting to $25 Billion to alleviate the hardship of the poor and the vulnerable; insurance cover of $67,000 (Rs 50 lakh) per person to over 2.2 million frontline health workers and others provision of relief to firms in statutory and regulatory compliance matters; easing of monetary policy by the RBI.

She also strongly encouraged NDB to take appropriate actions to join the G-20 forum along with other Multilateral Development Bank (MDBs)/International Financial Institutions (IFIs). Finally, she urged NDB to follow innovative practices in supporting the BRICS nations for achieving their Sustainable Development Goals.

The NDB was established by the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) in 2014. The purpose of the Bank is to mobilise resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS and other emerging market economies and developing countries to complement the existing efforts of multilateral and regional financial institutions for global growth and development. NDB has so far approved 14 projects in India for an amount of $ 4,183 million.