Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted his government’s support for Sri Lanka during its ongoing economic crisis whilst speaking at the G7 meeting.
Commenting on aid provided by India, Modi stated:
“We have dispatched about 35,000 tonnes of wheat as humanitarian aid to Afghanistan in the last few months. And even after the heavy earthquake there, India was the first country to deliver relief materials. We are also helping our neighbour Sri Lanka to ensure food security”.
In March India provided Sri Lanka with a $1 billion credit line to support Sri Lanka during the economic crisis and to help deal with food shortages. Today US President, Joe Biden, also announced $20 million in additional assistance to strengthen food security in Sri Lanka.
The G7 is an inter-governmental political grouping consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the U.K. and the U.S. India, Argentina, Indonesia, Senegal and South Africa were welcomed as guests during this conference as partners in the Global South.
During the G7 meetings, Modi also stressed that the focus should be on the availability of fertilisers as well as alternatives such as millets and natural farming.
The G7 meeting also saw the announcement of a plan to raise $600 billion in funding by 2027 for the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGII). The PGIII is seen as a way of challenging China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) which was initially launched in 2013 and has seen investments in infrastructure projects across Asia and Africa.
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