New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will be on an official visit to Qatar from September 27 to 29, leading a delegation of senior officials from the Ministry of Finance, according to an official statement.
During the visit, the Finance Minister will attend the 11th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) scheduled in Doha on September 28, besides other important bilateral meetings with the AIIB President and her counterparts from Jordan, Switzerland, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, and Nepal, the statement said.
The Finance Minister will participate in the annual meeting of the AIIB, in her capacity as the Indian Governor to the AIIB. India is the second largest shareholder of the bank.
The AIIB is a multilateral development bank that finances building projects — like roads, green energy, and water systems — to improve economic and social conditions in Asia and globally. The bank, headquartered in Beijing, started operations in January 2016 with a capital of $100 billion. The bank has 111 approved member countries from around the world.
The main focus areas of the bank are funding projects that support clean energy and protect the environment, and improving transport, digital networks, as well as water infrastructure between countries.
Besides, it is also working with private investors to fund large-scale public and private developments.
As part of the official visit, the Union Finance Minister is expected to call on the leadership of the Qatari government and also engage with Qatari business leaders and investors. She is expected to hold talks to deepen trade and investment ties between the two countries.
India and Qatar have strong bilateral energy relations with a 20-year LNG agreement between India’s Petronet LNG and QatarEnergy, securing 7.5 million tonnes of LNG annually from 2028 to 2048. This represents a landmark achievement in the energy partnership between the two countries and an important pillar of India’s long-term energy security.
However, India has recently gone in for a sharp increase in purchases of LNG and LPG from the United States as the choking of the Strait of Hormuz has disrupted supplies from the Gulf countries.
(IANS)
