Dinesh Sharma, Temporary Governor for India, and Charles Boamah, African Development (AfDB) Vice-President in charge of Finance inked a protocol accord, related to the replenishment of the country's technical cooperation agreement, in Abidjan.
The agreement comes in the margins of the AfDB's Annual Meetings, and on the heels of a generous contribution to the African Development Fund 13th Replenishment (ADF-13) by India, in which it increased its pledge by 57.28 per cent (as compared to ADF-12) - with a contribution of UA 12,364,333 (INR 1.03 billion).
Signing the accord, Vice-President Boamah recalled the long-standing relationship between India and the Bank, underscoring that the replenishment is another manifestation of the strong partnership. "We know you trust the Bank and Africa," Boamah said, adding that, beyond the replenishment, it is interesting to know that the partnership provides opportunities for knowledge-sharing in India's development.
Dinesh Sharma also magnified the relationship with the Bank, stating, "This is a valued relationship and we shall engage more and more, as we are in the same boat and we need to support each other in learning. We would appreciate a lot more of this kind of engagement."
It is worth recollecting that the partnership has been deepened by India's commitment to further replenish the India-Africa Economic Cooperation Trust Fund by 600 million Indian rupees (INR), equivalent to US $9,523,809.52, which, Boamah recognised, "is a significant increase from the agreement signed in 2010 of US $6.75 million."
Under AfDB-India joint cooperation, the Trust Fund is delivering significant results in enhancing Public Private Partnerships in a number of sectors in Regional Member Countries.
In this regard, India is supporting the African Legal Support Facility to enhance governments' capacity to negotiate appropriate legal agreements. The Trust Fund is also supporting the Bank in addressing its trade finance initiatives, as well as promoting infrastructure and regional integration - particularly through the railways enhancement project in East Africa.
End
