India grants $250 mn line of credit to ECOWAS

The Indian government's grant was signed by representatives of EXIM Bank of India and ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development.

India on Thursday granted a concessional line of credit of $250 million to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

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The Indian government's grant was signed by representatives of EXIM Bank of India and ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) during the inaugural session of the 'India-Africa Project Partnership' regional conclave.

Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma, ECOWAS chairman and Niger Foreign Minister Aichatou Mindaoudou and Ghana Foreign Minister Nana Akufo Addo were also present at the signing ceremony, which was attended by around 350 business leaders from India, Ghana, West and Central Africa.

KS Mathews, a senior official at the Indian High Commission in Accra (Ghana), said in a statement that the Indian government had agreed to the Line of Credit (LOC) during a ECOWAS delegation's visit to India last month.

"The objectives of this and other initiatives of the Government of India such as TEAM-9 and the Pan African Satellite Network, are to develop an active partnership with the African countries in tackling socio-economic development challenges through transfer of technologies, products, know how and expertise," he said.

The regional conclave, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) with the support of the Indian government and Exim Bank of India, is a follow-up to the successful conclaves in India in March and November 2005.