ADB-India Partnership Strategy

The country partnership strategy (CPS), 2013-2017 for India supports its 12th Five Year Plan to create jobs for youth, enhances ongoing investment reforms, and improves infrastructure in critical areas, such as energy, transport, urban services and water.

The partnership focuses on placing people at the heart of development by creating skills that will allow youth to secure better jobs and wages, and then on companies, the main creators of these jobs. The strategy combines physical investments with knowledge products to target emerging issues such as urbanization, water scarcity, climate change, emission controls, internet connectivity, vocational training, and the development of capital markets.

Under the strategy, operations will center on lagging states with high poverty levels and gaps between rural and urban sectors. The northeast, for example, is a land-bridge for India to reach fast growing and lucrative ASEAN markets, illustrating why furthering regional cooperation and integration is a cornerstone of the strategy. This will be matched by work in economic corridor development, particularly in southeast India, which provides access to cost-effective shipping routes.

The country operations business plan (COBP), 2017–2019 marks a transition into a period beyond the ongoing CPS, 2013–2017. The COBP reflects a continued finetuning of the ADB program in support of the government’s priority areas and flagship initiatives.