The Andhra Pradesh (AP) government has recently concluded an agreement with the New Development Bank (NDB) for two road projects worth $646 million.

It is in the process of implementing the World Bank (WB)-funded Rejuvenating Watersheds for Agriculture Resilience through Innovative Development (REWARD) project in five districts in the parched Rayalaseema region and the tribal belt of Visakhapatnam district over the next six years.

The Visakhapatnam-Chennai Industrial Corridor Development Project comprised a grant and a policy-based loan amounting to $630 million and the government is working with the WB for improving the quality and responsiveness of the public health services in the State, said Industries and Commerce Minister Mekapati Goutham Reddy.

Participating in a virtual conference on ‘Business Opportunities with Largest Sources of Funding’ jointly organised by the Federations of AP and Telangana Chambers of Commerce and Industry on Friday, Mr. Goutham Reddy said multilateral banks were playing a crucial role in fighting poverty, supporting economic growth, and were ensuring sustainable gains in the quality of people’s lives in developing countries.

He said India’s partnership with the multilateral banks allowed it to leverage their analytical, financial and human resources for the benefit of the country.

The Minister pointed out that India’s engagement with the WB started in 1948 with the funding of the Agricultural Machinery Project.

The WB’s lending portfolio consists of 105 operations with $27.10 billion in commitments with transport, water, energy and information and communications technology sectors accounting for a major chunk of the loans.

Mr. Goutham Reddy said India started availing Asian Development Bank (ADB)’s assistance in 1986, after which it committed 239 sovereign loans totalling $42.26 billion. Cumulative loan and grant disbursements to India amounted to $31.79 billion.

In 2019, the ADB committed a record $3.18 billion loan for 10 projects in infrastructure, transport, energy, urban services and agriculture sectors.

India became a founding member of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) in 2016 and holds the second largest share after China. India received $4.35 billion from AIIB, the highest for any country.

Mr. Goutham Reddy said AP was focused on investing in hard infrastructure such as industrial corridors, industrial parks, ports and airports coupled with soft infrastructure such as educational facilities, health care, skill development and capacity building.

AP government chief secretary Aditya Nath Das, FAPCCI president C.V. Atchut Rao and FTCCI president I. Ramakanth and others took part.