New Delhi, India (BBN)- Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and Minister Arun Jaitley agreed on Saturday to establish a capacity development center in New Delhi.
The South Asia Regional Training and Technical Assistance Center (SARTTAC) is expected to become the focal point for planning, coordinating, and implementing the IMF’s capacity development activities in the region on a wide range of areas, including macroeconomic and fiscal management, monetary operations, financial sector regulation and supervision, and macroeconomic statistics.
The Center will help address existing training needs and respond to the demand for IMF training in India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, while bringing the region’s training volume on par with those of other regions, the IMF said.
The signing of this Memorandum of Understanding represents a key step toward a fully integrated capacity development center in New Delhi, and demonstrates the shared commitment between the IMF and its membership in using technical assistance and training as vehicles for economic stability and inclusive growth.
The SARTTAC will offer courses and seminars for policymakers and other government agencies from the six aforementioned countries. It will build upon the IMF’s in-depth experience with capacity development by drawing on the experiences of the IMF’s Regional Technical Assistance Centers and Regional Training Centers, which have a proven track record of delivering technical assistance on economic institution building.
“Funding will come from contributions by regional member countries and development partners,” the IMF explained.
The Australian Agency for International Development, the Republic of Korea and India have pledged financial support for the Center, it added.
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