New Delhi: India-born President of the World Bank Ajay Banga India on Wednesday said that India has an opportunity to create jobs in the manufacturing sector by taking advantage of the ‘China plus one’ opportunity, but this window is available only for a short time. “India’s opportunity at present is to capitalize on the China-plus-one opportunity. This opportunity will not be open for 10 years.
It’s a three to five year opportunity when supply chains start to connect in another location. This is one of the topics we will discuss with people in the government,” Banga, who is in the capital to meet top government officials, told reporters.
Enthusiastic about India, the World Bank chief said there is a need to create 15-20 million jobs with a large pool in the services sector with some highly skilled people in manufacturing and technology. “India has done a lot of things which have helped it stay ahead. There has been a lot of growth in the last year. Most countries would be very happy with 7% growth in this environment. I’m a little optimistic. My general understanding is that if any global recessionBanga said, one thing that is good for India is that a large part of its GDP comes from domestic consumption, which is very helpful in such times.
He said that India, like many other countries, had retreated in its fight against poverty, but has now emerged “relatively strong”. The latest data released by NITI Aayog estimates that 135 million Indians have moved out of multidimensional poverty during the last five years. “The best way to hammer the nail in the coffin of poverty is through growth and jobs. You have to provide skills, education and healthcare but ultimately, it is development and jobs that your country is focused on. So, I’m actually more optimistic today with all the infrastructure investments, digital and physical. “I am more optimistic today than (earlier),” he said after visiting a skill development center near the Delhi airport.
Asked about reforms at the World Bank, Banga, who has worked in several multinational companies, said a decision on new instruments would be taken at the annual meeting in October, but steps like reducing the debt-to-equity ratio could be taken by the agency itself. He said a huge amount of money is needed to meet the new challenges and about $1 trillion would be required for renewable energy.
“You cannot get that kind of money alone from governments or multilateral banks or even from philanthropy, you have to get it from the private sector. You will need various forms of concessional capital as well as multilateral and government capital and philanthropy to take the first risk position or enable blended finance. Actually we are fighting with many crises. The requirements are huge,” he said.
It’s a three to five year opportunity when supply chains start to connect in another location. This is one of the topics we will discuss with people in the government,” Banga, who is in the capital to meet top government officials, told reporters.
Enthusiastic about India, the World Bank chief said there is a need to create 15-20 million jobs with a large pool in the services sector with some highly skilled people in manufacturing and technology. “India has done a lot of things which have helped it stay ahead. There has been a lot of growth in the last year. Most countries would be very happy with 7% growth in this environment. I’m a little optimistic. My general understanding is that if any global recessionBanga said, one thing that is good for India is that a large part of its GDP comes from domestic consumption, which is very helpful in such times.
He said that India, like many other countries, had retreated in its fight against poverty, but has now emerged “relatively strong”. The latest data released by NITI Aayog estimates that 135 million Indians have moved out of multidimensional poverty during the last five years. “The best way to hammer the nail in the coffin of poverty is through growth and jobs. You have to provide skills, education and healthcare but ultimately, it is development and jobs that your country is focused on. So, I’m actually more optimistic today with all the infrastructure investments, digital and physical. “I am more optimistic today than (earlier),” he said after visiting a skill development center near the Delhi airport.
Asked about reforms at the World Bank, Banga, who has worked in several multinational companies, said a decision on new instruments would be taken at the annual meeting in October, but steps like reducing the debt-to-equity ratio could be taken by the agency itself. He said a huge amount of money is needed to meet the new challenges and about $1 trillion would be required for renewable energy.
“You cannot get that kind of money alone from governments or multilateral banks or even from philanthropy, you have to get it from the private sector. You will need various forms of concessional capital as well as multilateral and government capital and philanthropy to take the first risk position or enable blended finance. Actually we are fighting with many crises. The requirements are huge,” he said.