Bangkok, October 16 (IANS). Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) Governor Kazuhiko Amakawa on the sidelines of the World Bank-IMF annual meetings here on Friday. During this, both sides discussed further expanding cooperation in the fields of clean energy, semiconductors and critical minerals.
The Finance Ministry said on social media platform X that during the meeting, discussions were held to enhance cooperation in clean energy, energy transition, advanced manufacturing, semiconductors, critical minerals, electric mobility and strong supply chains. Japanese participation in the $600 million India-Japan Fund and the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) were also mentioned in the discussion.
During the meeting, Kazuhiko Amakawa mentioned the success of the India-Japan Fund in the electric mobility and bioethanol sectors and also expressed hope for a new fund in the future.
Referring to JBIC's stake in the National Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (NICDC), he said that the interest of Japanese companies in the semiconductor sector is continuously increasing. He particularly emphasized on the opportunities in Dholera and the investment potential in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and data center sector.
The Finance Minister urged Japanese companies to increase investment in setting up data centers in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities like Visakhapatnam, so as to promote balanced urban development.
Both sides recognized that there is considerable potential to further deepen economic and financial cooperation between India and Japan and to learn from each other's experiences.
Earlier in the day, Nirmala Sitharaman delivered the keynote address on “Working Together to Make Cities Investable – Mobilizing Private Capital for Urban and Water Infrastructure” at an event organized on the sidelines of the World Bank-IMF annual meetings, in which she outlined India's ambitious urban development programs.
Speaking to the Atlantic Council, the Finance Minister said that many middle income group countries suddenly get caught in a serious balance of payments crisis and they need the assistance of the IMF.
He said, “In such situations, the response should not come after many years. Countries seek help out of compulsion, but no solution is received even for three-four years.”
Sitharaman said that now reforms are being made to remove such shortcomings.
–IANS
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