India, US renew global development partnership deal for 5 years

New Delhi

India and the US on Friday renewed for another five years a global development partnership agreement that provides for jointly offering assistance to their partner countries in areas of connectivity, trade and investments, healthcare and agriculture.

Both sides signed the second amendment to the Statement of Guiding Principles on Triangular Cooperation for Global Development, the Ministry of External Affairs said. The SGP agreement was signed in November 2014 and the fresh amendment extended the pact’s validity till 2026. “Under the agreement, India and US will continue to offer capacity building assistance to partner countries in multiple sectors, focusing primarily on agriculture, regional connectivity, trade and investments, nutrition, he­alth, clean and renewable energy, women empowerm­ent, disaster preparedness, water, sa­nitation, education and institution building,” the MEA said.

The US embassy said the SGP between the US and India leverages the combined capacities of the two sides to address global development challenges facing countries in the wider region and the world, particularly in Asia and Africa. “The US-India partnership is a significant contributor to regional and global stability and prosperity. Today the two countries reiterated their commitment, signing a five-year extension to the Statement of Guiding Principles on Triangular Cooperation for Global Development (SGP),” it said.

Atul Keshap, the Charge d’Affaires of the US in India, described renewal of the pact as a signal by the two sides to their joint commitment to global prosperity. “As a signal of our joint commitment to global prosperity, today, the US and India renew­ed our global development partnership agreement, affirming our goals to meet the development aspirations of partner countries, particularly in Asia and Africa. #USIndiaDosti,” he tweeted. The MEA said the second amendment expands the scope of capacity building activities undertaken jointly by India and the US and provides for a consultative me­ch­anism for biannual mo­n­itoring and review of activities undertaken under the SGP. “The agreement helps fulfil the joint commitment of both nations to work tog­ether and leverage their combined capacities to provide demand-driven development partnership.”