Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman chaired the Roundtable on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure on the sidelines of the World Bank and IMF Annual Meetings in Washington, DC, USA, last night. The Finance Ministry said during the meeting Mrs. Sitharaman stressed the danger of the development gains being undercut by increasing climate-induced risks to infrastructure and the critical services it supports.
The Minister also participated in the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable on the sidelines of the World Bank and IMF Annual Meetings. During the meeting, she called for a deeper dialogue to help countries meet debt obligations without compromising critical investments. She also cautioned against contingency financing instruments as they can result in deferred obligations, which can worsen future debt challenges.
Meanwhile, during a panel discussion organised by the Centre for Global Development, Mrs. Sitharaman stated that India’s priority is not to impose its dominance and that the nation has followed a policy of strategic and peaceful multilateralism. She urged multilateral institutions to focus on their core competencies and strengthen themselves for the global good.
The minister also met World Bank President Ajay Banga. The Finance Ministry noted that the two discussed issues related to private capital participation in global public goods, energy security, and multilateral development Banks reforms.