Under PM Modi, India’s Development Grants To Other Countries Grew By 154 Per Cent To $28 Billion In FY19

Under the NDA government, India's development assistance to countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America has increased by more than twofold in the past five years, reports Mint.

While the country extended 195 lines of credit worth $11 billion in 2013-14 to developing economies across the world, 278 lines of credit worth $28 billion were given to 63 countries in 2018-19.

Most of the recipient countries were based in Asia and Africa. Lines of credit refer to loans extended by India to foreign governments at concessional rates. The money lent by India is borrowed at market rates by India’s EXIM Bank from the international market.

India’s development programme also includes grant assistance as well as scholarships besides lines of credit.

“I would say that there is a conscious effort by India to increase its lines of credit portfolio in recent years because of the increased penetration of China in areas and regions seen as India’s traditional strongholds," said former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal.

Counterweight To China

Increased development assistance, which not only positions India as an economic powerhouse but helps bolster India’s political influence in recipient countries, has become crucial as Chinese investments in Asia and Africa have increased exponentially in the last decade.

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