FM Sitharaman Holds Discussions With Senior Officials In Run-Up To BRICS Meet

(MENAFN- IANS) New Delhi, Sep 7 (IANS) Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday chaired a meeting with senior officials of the Department of Economic Affairs to review key outcomes of the BRICS Finance Track and prepare for the final BRICS Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting in Mumbai during September 9-10, ahead of the Leaders' Summit.

“Following the successful meeting of Ministers and Governors in Jaipur last month, preparations are now underway for the Mumbai meeting - with a strong team of women bringing leadership, expertise and experience to the Finance Track, guided by the theme:“Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability,” according to a Finance Ministry statement posted on X.

The BRICS Finance Ministers' and Central Bank Governors' meeting was held last month in Jaipur, under India's chairship.

The Finance Minister highlighted at the meeting that while BRICS economies represent major growth engines of the global economy, they also face common structural constraints in mobilising private capital at scale.

She underscored the critical role that the Multilateral Development Banks play in de-risking investments, enhancing project bankability, and strengthening investor confidence to attract more private capital.

The Finance Minister emphasised that the future of development finance lies in partnership, multilateral institutions, national governments, and the private sector each bringing distinct strengths.

Speaking of India's experience, FM Sitharaman said that the Government of India has strengthened its infrastructure ecosystem through sustained public capital expenditure and complementary structural reforms. Public investment has expanded significantly compared to a decade ago, reflecting a deliberate strategy to create productive national assets across highways, railways, ports, logistics systems, digital infrastructure, and energy networks.

The Finance Minister stated that the Government of India believes that public capital must act as a catalyst - not a substitute for private investment, and in support of this principle, the Government of India has carried out multiple reforms. These include viability gap funding (VGF) to support financially constrained but socially desirable projects; hybrid annuity model (HAM) to ensure balanced risk-sharing in road infrastructure; and credit enhancement mechanisms to improve project bankability.

Besides, the setting up of Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs) has helped recycle capital and attract long-term institutional investors.

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