Seventh Meeting of the Economic and Financial Partnership (EFP)- New Delhi on 1st November 2019

[Hindustani78]

01st November, 2019 20:09 IST

The Seventh Meeting of the Economic and Financial Partnership (EFP) was held in New Delhi on 1st November 2019 between the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of India and the Department of the Treasury, United States of America.

The Indian Delegation was led by Union Government of India, Minister of Finance Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman and the U.S. Delegation was led by United States of America, Secretary of the Treasury Mr. Steven Mnuchin.

The Seventh Meeting of the India-U.S. Economic and Financial Partnership is Meant to Deepen the Economic Partnership Between the Two Countries as a Framework, Commensurate with the Growing Importance of Our Economic Relations and Significant Business and Religious Ties that Already Exist between the Two Nations and to Undertake Further Work in a Number of Areas to Improve Cooperation and Support for Economic Development.

During this Seventh Meeting of the Economic and Financial Partnership (EFP), both sides had In-Depth Exchanges of Views on a Range of Issues such as the Global, United States of America and Union of India's Establishment Economic Outlooks, Global Debt Sustainability, Financial Sector Reforms, Leveraging of Capital Flows and Investment, and Tackling International Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terror Networks (AML/CFT).

United States of America and Union of India's Establishment Discussed Policies to Stimulate Economic Growth and Noted the Significant Steps Union of India's Establishment has taken to Strengthen the Financial Sector, including Public Sector Bank Recapitalization and Plans to Merge some of the State-Owned Banks. Both sides also Discussed Capital Flows, Investment Promotion Related Issues, and the External Economic Environment.

Both sides are committed to Greater Economic Cooperation on Global Economic Issues, both Bilaterally and Multilaterally in the G20 and other fora.

United States of America and Union of India's Establishment look Forward to Enhanced Collaboration to Address the Challenges to Global Growth under the G20 Presidency of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. As Union of India's Establishment Gears up for the 2022 Presidency of the G20, the United States of America stands ready to support Union of India's Establishment in hosting a Successful and Focused Presidency.

Our Respective Financial Regulatory Authorities have also Recently Discussed Financial Regulatory Developments in the Financial Regulatory Dialogue.

United States of America and Union of India's Establishment recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation, Coordination, Consultation and Exchange of Information Relating to the Regulation of the Insurance Sector. Both sides look Forward to the Ongoing Discussion on Issues related to Data Localisation.

The United States of America and Union of India's Establishment recognise the Importance of Foreign Portfolio Investors for Supporting Economic Growth, and Discussed ways to Build on Union of India's Establishment Positive Steps in Further Opening to Greater Foreign Portfolio Investment. Both sides welcome the Growing Bilateral Foreign Direct Investment between our Countries and Underscore the Importance of Union of India's Establishment taking Steps to Improve the Investment Climate for All Types of Investors. These Investments will Help to Boost Growth for Both Countries.

Both Sides are working together to Attract more Private Sector Capital to Finance Union of India's Establishment Infrastructure needs and Further Raise Growth for both Countries. Union of India's Establishment has set up the National Infrastructure and Investment Fund (NIIF) to Catalyze Private Institutional Investment in Indian Infrastructure, for which the United States of America has provided technical support. The United States of America helped the Indian city of Pune successfully Launch Municipal Bonds in 2017 to Finance Local Infrastructure needs to Support the Elected Union Government of India's Smart Cities initiative.

The United States of America and Union of India's Establishment look Forward to working together for preparing more cities to issue Municipal Bonds, including Technical Assistance, and to having a More Broad-based Relationship with Respect to Institutional Investment into Infrastructure in Union of India.

Both Sides took Note of the Importance of Having Greater Attention to Transparency and Debt Sustainability in Bilateral Development Lending. United States of America and Union of India's Establishment both support Global Efforts to improve Debt Sustainability and Transparency, including through the International Financial Institutions’ Multipronged Approach and the Efforts of the G20 and Other Groups. In 2019, Elected Union Government of India has Voluntarily Associated with the French Club to Cooperate in the Elected Union Government of India works, as An Observer appointed by Union of India's Establishment.

Both sides Appreciated the Recent Signing of An Arrangement that Enables Automatic Exchange of Country-by Country Reports for Purposes of High Level Transfer Pricing Risk Assessment. Both sides also Noted the Significant Progress in Recent Years to Resolve Bilateral Tax Disputes between the Two Countries, and Applaud ongoing Efforts to Prevent Tax Disputes and provide certainty to Indian Taxpayers in short Indian Citizens through the Existing Mutual Agreement Procedure and Bilateral Advance Pricing Agreement Relationship.

United States of America and Union of India's Establishment took Note of the Progress Made in Sharing Financial Account Information between the Two Countries under the Inter-Governmental Agreement pursuant to the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), and Encourage both sides to Work Together to Further improve the Quality and Usability of Data for Mutual Benefit. Both Sides will continue to Collaborate and Share Experiences for Tackling Offshore Tax Evasion.

United States of America and Union of India's Establishment will continue to Enhance our Cooperation in Tackling Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terror Network (AML/CFT). Our Relationship has Strengthened over time as both sides have Developed a Holistic Approach to Our Bilateral Engagement on Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act (AML/CFT) issues of Shared Concern. Our Cooperation includes but is not limited to, information Exchanges to Combat Global terror financing Networks and to support the Designation of Specific Terror Units facilitators and financiers, coordinating on Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act (AML/CFT) and Maintaining the Integrity of the Financial Acton Task Force (FATF) Global Standards for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act (AML/CFT). Union of India's Establishment has Demonstrated the Support for Action against Non-Compliant Countries. In addition, United States of America and Union of India's Establishment continue to work on Developing Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act (AML/CFT) Frameworks to Mitigate the Associated illicit Finance Risks.

Both Sides are Encouraged with the Developments that have taken place since the Last Meeting of the Economic and Financial Partnership and look forward to Continued Engagement to Strengthen our Bilateral Relationship, our Economies and Our Economic Security.

Signed at New Delhi on 01st day of November 2019 by Elected Union Government of India.

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