The Indian economy will stay on course despite global headwinds and is projected to grow at 7% in fiscal 2022-23, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, attributing this to the conducive domestic policy environment and focus on key structural reforms.
FM Sitharaman’s remarks came during her intervention at the plenary session of the International Monetary Finance Committee (IMFC) on Friday.
The meeting itself, she said, is being held at a juncture when the global economic outlook is clouded by key downside risks: growth slowdown in major economies, cross-border effects due to the ongoing geopolitical situation, inflationary pressures led by escalating food, and energy prices that have adversely impacted vulnerable economies.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman
She told members of the IMFC that the Indian government took initiatives to protect growth while pursuing inflation management.
The government has ensured the availability of free food grains to more than 800 million vulnerable families for the past 25 months, through the country’s massive public distribution network, she said.
Last-mile delivery of financial services to the poor has been a key priority of the government and this has been aided by India’s digital public goods infrastructure.
Today, India is leading the world in terms of digital payments innovations with our transaction cost being the lowest in the world, FM Sitharaman said.
Of the view that the IMF needs to increase resources available for emerging and low-income countries to safeguard the global financial system, the Union Minister underscored that concluding the 16th General Review of Quotas (GRQ) by December 15th, 2023 is vital for increasing the voting rights of emerging market economies (EMES) in line with their relative positions in the world economy.
