Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman has called on the World Bank to promote a two-way exchange of innovations, drawing from the transformative experiences of the Global South in the sectors of digital inclusion and sustainable energy. 

 

The Finance Minister made this statement while addressing the Development Committee Plenary session on “A Future-Ready World Bank Group”  during the annual meetings in 2024 at the World Bank in Washington, D.C. She sought a more affordable World Bank with a more competitive pricing model to foster broader participation, incentivise middle-income countries to borrow more and deepen development impact.

 

Nirmala Sitharaman also reiterated India’s stand that the World Bank should adopt a strictly evidence-based and data-driven approach when preparing global indices and country comparators such as the Worldwide Governance Indicators and the new B-Ready index.

 

The Finance Minister also participated in the IMFC Plenary session on ‘MD’s Global Policy Agenda’ at the International Monetary Fund during annual meetings. 

 

At the event, She said that  In 2024 the global economy has shown remarkable resilience; while output is nearing its potential in some major economies, headline inflation has generally moderated and moved closer to the central banks’ targets.