Geneva:

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, when asked about the need for BRICS while a grouping like G20 already existed, responded that if the G7 can exist when there is the G20, there is no reason why BRICS cannot.

Mr Jaishankar said this during a conversation with Ambassador Jean-David Levitte at Geneva Centre for Security Policy, a think tank.

BRICS was founded as an intergovernmental organisation by Brazil, Russia, India and China in 2009, with South Africa joining in later. In January this year, five new countries – Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, UAE and Ethiopia – joined the bloc.

“Why the club? Because there was another club. It was called the G7 and you will not let anybody else into that club. So, we go and form our own club,” the foreign minister said.

“I’m still struck by how insecure the (Global) North is when you speak about the BRICS. Somehow, something seems to get under people’s skin,” he said.

“Here’s an observation. There is a G20, did the G7 disband? Has it stopped meeting? No, it still continues. So, the G20 exists, but the G7 still exists. Then, why can’t the G20 be there and the BRICS also exist?” he said further.

Mr Jaishankar also talked about the Global South. “The countries of the Global South, most of them are decolonised countries. Most of them are developing countries,” he explained. He termed it as “an intuitive gathering of countries who actually know why they are in that room and they have a feel for each other,” he said.

The foreign minister is currently on the third and final leg of his three-nation tour. He started off in Saudi Arabia for the first India-Gulf Cooperation Council Ministerial Meeting and went on to visit Germany.

He held wide-ranging talks with his German counterpart, Annalena Baerbock, and called on German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin.
 

Geneva:

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said today that there has been “some progress” with China on the boundary issue. The minister said that approximately 75 per cent of the “disengagement” problems has been resolved.

Mr Jaishankar, who is in Geneva, Switzerland for bilateral meetings, said this at an interactive session at the Global Centre for Security Policy – an independent think-tank. The minister further said that the bigger issue has been the increasing militarisation of the frontier.

Mr Jaishankar said the Galwan Valley clashes of June 2020 affected the “entirety” of India-China ties, asserting that “One cannot have violence at the border and then say the rest of the relationship is insulated from it”.

“Negotiations are going on. We made some progress. I would say roughly you can say about 75 per cent of the disengagement problems are sorted out,” he said, adding “We still have some things to do.”

Ties between India and China have been at an all-time low as the militaries of both nations have been standing their ground since the standoff in Ladakh began in May 2020. The disengagement process began in February 2021 and has been on since.

Roughly 75% of the disengagement problems with China has been sorted out, Mr Jaishankar said. Mr Jaishankar is scheduled to meet Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his visit to Switzerland.

Talks at both the diplomatic and military levels between India and China have held on an ongoing basis. “We hope that if there is a solution to the disengagement and there is a return to peace and tranquility, then we can look at other possibilities,” Mr Jaishankar said.

While partial disengagement from Galwan, Hot Springs, and Gogra happened in July 2020 while full disengagement from Pangong Lake north and south banks took place in February 2021. However, Chinese soldiers are firmly entrenched in the Depsang Plains in northeastern Ladakh and show no signs of moving.

The Line of Actual Control or LAC between India and China, including China-occupied Tibet, is around 3,500 km in length.

India has maintained that its ties with China cannot be normal unless there is peace in the border areas.

“The basis obviously for a good relationship, I would say even for a normal relationship, was that there would be peace and tranquility in the border. After things started to take a better turn in 1988, we had a series of agreements which stabilised the border,” Mr Jaishankar said.

VIOLATIONS BY CHINA

Speaking about how China unilaterally changed the status-quo along the LAC, Mr Jaishankar said “What happened in 2020 was in violation of multiple agreements for some reasons which are still entirely not clear to us; we can speculate on it.”

“The Chinese actually moved a very large number of troops to the Line of Actual Control at the border and naturally in response, we moved our troops up. It was very difficult for us because we were in the middle of a Covid lockdown at that time,” he said.

Describing the development as very dangerous and referring to the Glawan clashes, Mr Jaishankar said, “Now we could see straight away that this was a very dangerous development because the presence of a large number of troops in these extreme heights and extreme cold in near proximity could lead to a mishap. And that’s exactly what happened.”

“We have now been negotiating close to four years and the first step of that is what we called disengagement which is their troops go back to their normal operating bases and our troops go back to their normal operating bases and where required we have an arrangement about patrolling because both of us patrol regularly in that border as I said it is not a legally delineated border.” Mr Jaishankar said.

IMPACT ON INDIA-CHINA TIES

Since the military clashes and subsequent standoff in Ladakh, the ties between India and China have been at an all-time low. The economic ties between the two nations have been imbalanced for the last few decades.

Speaking about trade ties, Mr Jaishankar said, the economic relationship with China has been “very unfair” and “unbalanced”. But he has maintained that India is not closed for business with China.

Two days ago, during his visit to Germany, Mr Jaishankar had said that India is “not closed to business from China”, but the issue is in which sectors the country does business with Beijing and on what terms.

“We are not closed to business from China…I think the issue is, which sectors do you do business and what terms do you do business? It’s far more complicated than a black and white binary answer,” Mr Jaishankar had said.

Since the Ladakh standoff, India has tightened its scrutiny of investments from Chinese companies and stopped all major projects, including in infrastructure. But as progress is made with China on disengagement along the LAC, government officials, including Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, have backed suggestions to allow more Chinese investment in the country.

Along with investment scrutiny, India has also virtually blocked visas for all Chinese nationals since 2020, but is now considering easing them for Chinese technicians, as it had hindered investments worth billions of dollars.

Since the Ladakh standoff, passenger flights between India and China had also stopped, but with progress in disengagement, though slow, resumption of flights is now being discussed.

Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu said today that early resumption of direct flights between India and China have been discussed by both nations.

According to a news report by Reuters, China has been pressing India since June to resume direct passenger flights, but New Delhi is resisting it as the disengagement in Ladakh is not complete.
 

Berlin:

Russia and Ukraine will have to resolve their conflict by negotiating off the battlefield and India is willing to advise them, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said.

Mr Jaishakar’s remarks came at a time when National Security Adviser Ajit Doval is in Moscow for a crucial meeting of NSAs. Sources have said that Mr Doval is carrying a peace plan proposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which he will share with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Whether or not Russia and Ukraine accept India’s proposal is not known yet, but India has offered to help end the conflict. During his visit to Ukraine, PM Modi told President Volodymyr Zelensky that India is ever ready to play an “active role” in every effort to restore peace and he would like to contribute personally in ending the conflict.

PM Modi is perhaps one of the very few leaders who shares friendly ties with both Mr Putin and Mr Zelensky and was warmly welcomed by both leaders during his recent visits to both nations.

The foreign minister was speaking at the Annual Ambassadors’ Conference of the German Foreign Office in Berlin, a day after he held a “useful conversation” with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov at the margins of the India-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) foreign ministers’ meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

“We don’t think this conflict is going to be resolved on the battlefield. At some stage, there’s going to be some negotiation. When there is a negotiation, the main parties – Russia and Ukraine – have to be at that negotiation,” Mr Jaishankar said.

He cited Prime Minister Modi’s visits to Russia and Ukraine and how the Indian leader had once told the Russian President that this was not “an era of war”. 

“We don’t think you’re going to get a solution out of the battlefield. If you want advice, we are always willing to give it,” Mr Jaishankar added.

The minister also spoke about Quad, which he said has been a successful experiment. Quad is a strategic security dialogue between India, United States, Australia and Japan.

“We have revived the Quad. It is a major diplomatic platform and India is committed to it,” he said.

Notably, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that India is among the three countries he is constantly in touch over the Ukraine conflict and said they are sincerely making efforts to resolve it.

“If there is a desire of Ukraine to carry on with the negotiations, I can do that.” Mr Putin’s remarks came within two weeks after Prime Minister Modi’s historic visit to Ukraine, where he held talks with President President Volodymyr Zelensky.

“We respect our friends and partners, who, I believe, sincerely seek to resolve all issues surrounding this conflict, primarily China, Brazil and India. I constantly keep in touch with our colleagues on this issue,” Mr Putin was quoted as saying by Russia’s TASS news agency.

Last week, Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told daily newspaper Izvestia that India could help in establishing a dialogue on Ukraine.

He spoke about the “highly constructive, even friendly relations” between PM Modi and President Putin and added the Indian leader can “lead the line on getting first-hand information from the participants in this conflict,” as he “freely communicates with Putin, Zelensky and the Americans.”

“This gives a great opportunity for India to throw its weight in world affairs, to use its influence that would drive the Americans and Ukrainians towards using a greater political will and entering the peaceful settlement track,” Mr Peskov said, adding that there are “no specific plans” for PM Modi to mediate on the issue.

PM Modi, on his visit to Ukraine last month, told President Volodymyr Zelensky that both Ukraine and Russia should sit together without wasting time to end the ongoing war and that India was ready to play an “active role” to restore peace in the region.

Mr Jaishankar also talked about India’s relations with China at the conference in Berlin, saying that India is not “closed to business from China”, but the issue is in which sectors the country does business with Beijing and on what terms.

Berlin:

Russia and Ukraine will have to resolve their conflict by negotiating off the battlefield and India is willing to advise them, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said.

Mr Jaishakar’s remarks came at a time when National Security Adviser Ajit Doval is in Moscow for a crucial meeting of NSAs. Sources have said that Mr Doval is carrying a peace plan proposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which he will share with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Whether or not Russia and Ukraine accept India’s proposal is not known yet, but India has offered to help end the conflict. During his visit to Ukraine, PM Modi told President Volodymyr Zelensky that India is ever ready to play an “active role” in every effort to restore peace and he would like to contribute personally in ending the conflict.

PM Modi is perhaps one of the very few leaders who shares friendly ties with both Mr Putin and Mr Zelensky and was warmly welcomed by both leaders during his recent visits to both nations.

The foreign minister was speaking at the Annual Ambassadors’ Conference of the German Foreign Office in Berlin, a day after he held a “useful conversation” with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov at the margins of the India-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) foreign ministers’ meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

“We don’t think this conflict is going to be resolved on the battlefield. At some stage, there’s going to be some negotiation. When there is a negotiation, the main parties – Russia and Ukraine – have to be at that negotiation,” Mr Jaishankar said.

He cited Prime Minister Modi’s visits to Russia and Ukraine and how the Indian leader had once told the Russian President that this was not “an era of war”. 

“We don’t think you’re going to get a solution out of the battlefield. If you want advice, we are always willing to give it,” Mr Jaishankar added.

The minister also spoke about Quad, which he said has been a successful experiment. Quad is a strategic security dialogue between India, United States, Australia and Japan.

“We have revived the Quad. It is a major diplomatic platform and India is committed to it,” he said.

Notably, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that India is among the three countries he is constantly in touch over the Ukraine conflict and said they are sincerely making efforts to resolve it.

“If there is a desire of Ukraine to carry on with the negotiations, I can do that.” Mr Putin’s remarks came within two weeks after Prime Minister Modi’s historic visit to Ukraine, where he held talks with President President Volodymyr Zelensky.

“We respect our friends and partners, who, I believe, sincerely seek to resolve all issues surrounding this conflict, primarily China, Brazil and India. I constantly keep in touch with our colleagues on this issue,” Mr Putin was quoted as saying by Russia’s TASS news agency.

Last week, Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told daily newspaper Izvestia that India could help in establishing a dialogue on Ukraine.

He spoke about the “highly constructive, even friendly relations” between PM Modi and President Putin and added the Indian leader can “lead the line on getting first-hand information from the participants in this conflict,” as he “freely communicates with Putin, Zelensky and the Americans.”

“This gives a great opportunity for India to throw its weight in world affairs, to use its influence that would drive the Americans and Ukrainians towards using a greater political will and entering the peaceful settlement track,” Mr Peskov said, adding that there are “no specific plans” for PM Modi to mediate on the issue.

PM Modi, on his visit to Ukraine last month, told President Volodymyr Zelensky that both Ukraine and Russia should sit together without wasting time to end the ongoing war and that India was ready to play an “active role” to restore peace in the region.

Mr Jaishankar also talked about India’s relations with China at the conference in Berlin, saying that India is not “closed to business from China”, but the issue is in which sectors the country does business with Beijing and on what terms.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who is currently in Saudi Arabia for a key Gulf summit, will travel to Germany and Switzerland later this week on an official visit.

Mr Jaishankar will reach Berlin, Germany, on Tuesday for a two-day official visit – his third visit as Foreign Minister to Berlin.

The minister will meet the German Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock as well as the leadership and other ministers from the German government with an aim to review the entire gamut of bilateral relations between India and Germany, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

“Both India and Germany share a robust Strategic Partnership and Germany is one of India’s prominent trading partners and among the largest Foreign Direct Investors,” the MEA said.

Mr Jaishankar is currently in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to attend the First India-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. His visit comes as India looks to bolster its ties in West Asia, popularly called the Middle East.

The Gulf Cooperation Council is a political and economic union of six countries in the Gulf region- Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman. 

After his Germany visit, Mr Jaishankar will travel to Geneva, Switzerland, from September 12 to 13. Mr Jaishankar will meet the Swiss Foreign Minister to review the close partnership between the two countries and explore avenues to enhance the bilateral relationship further, according to the MEA.

Geneva is home to some of the most important international organisations and UN agencies, including the World Health Organisation, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, and the International Labour Organisation.

The minister is expected to meet the heads and representatives of international organisations with whom India is actively engaged.

As the most populous country in the world and among the top 5 global economies, India has been vying for permanent membership of the United Nations Security Council for years. Countries like Russia, France, the US, and the UK have endorsed India’s bid, with China being the only hindrance.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who is currently in Saudi Arabia for a key Gulf summit, will travel to Germany and Switzerland later this week on an official visit.

Mr Jaishankar will reach Berlin, Germany, on Tuesday for a two-day official visit – his third visit as Foreign Minister to Berlin.

The minister will meet the German Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock as well as the leadership and other ministers from the German government with an aim to review the entire gamut of bilateral relations between India and Germany, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

“Both India and Germany share a robust Strategic Partnership and Germany is one of India’s prominent trading partners and among the largest Foreign Direct Investors,” the MEA said.

Mr Jaishankar is currently in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to attend the First India-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. His visit comes as India looks to bolster its ties in West Asia, popularly called the Middle East.

The Gulf Cooperation Council is a political and economic union of six countries in the Gulf region- Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman. 

After his Germany visit, Mr Jaishankar will travel to Geneva, Switzerland, from September 12 to 13. Mr Jaishankar will meet the Swiss Foreign Minister to review the close partnership between the two countries and explore avenues to enhance the bilateral relationship further, according to the MEA.

Geneva is home to some of the most important international organisations and UN agencies, including the World Health Organisation, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, and the International Labour Organisation.

The minister is expected to meet the heads and representatives of international organisations with whom India is actively engaged.

As the most populous country in the world and among the top 5 global economies, India has been vying for permanent membership of the United Nations Security Council for years. Countries like Russia, France, the US, and the UK have endorsed India’s bid, with China being the only hindrance.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar arrived in Saudi Arabia today to take part in the First India-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. During the visit, he is also expected to hold bilateral meetings with Foreign Ministers from GCC member countries, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

The Gulf Cooperation Council is a political and economic union of six countries in the Gulf region- Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman. 

Arrived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to take part in the First India – Gulf Cooperation Council Foreign Ministers’ Meeting.

Thank Abdulmajeed Al Smari, Deputy Minister for Protocol Affairs for the warm reception. pic.twitter.com/cZBtBIYBdW

— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) September 8, 2024

“India and the GCC enjoy a deep and multifaceted relationship, in areas including political, trade & investment, energy cooperation, cultural and people – to – people ties. The GCC region has emerged as a major trading partner for India and is home to a large Indian expatriate community, numbering around 8.9 million. The Foreign Ministers meeting will be an opportunity to review and deepen institutional cooperation between India and the GCC across various sectors,” the MEA said.

Mr Jaishankar will thereafter visit Berlin, Germany, for a two-day trip from September 10 to 11. This will be his third visit as Minister to Berlin. “Both India and Germany share a robust Strategic Partnership and Germany is one of India’s prominent trading partners and among the largest Foreign Direct Investors,” the MEA said.

He will also travel to Geneva, Switzerland for an official visit from September 12 to 13. During the visit, he will meet heads and representatives of international organisations with whom India is actively engaged.

Notably, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, will come to India for a two-day official visit from September 9 to 10. The Crown Prince will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi to hold discussions on bilateral cooperation.

Mr Jaishankar on Friday spoke about revitalising the connections between India and the Mediterranean region.

“It is vital that as we move forward, we embrace this collaborative spirit, uphold open communication, and commit to shared goals. Together we can address today’s challenges, unlock new opportunities and build a resilient and connected future,” he said at the CII India Mediterranean Business Conclave.

He underscored the need for strengthening security and defence cooperation between India and the Mediterranean region, given the high volatility and uncertainty in the global economy. 

The Mediterranean region has a vast green hydrogen and green ammonia potential. Highlighting this, Mr Jaishankar talked about energy cooperation as another important dimension of collaboration.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar arrived in Saudi Arabia today to take part in the First India-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. During the visit, he is also expected to hold bilateral meetings with Foreign Ministers from GCC member countries, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

The Gulf Cooperation Council is a political and economic union of six countries in the Gulf region- Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman. 

Arrived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to take part in the First India – Gulf Cooperation Council Foreign Ministers’ Meeting.

Thank Abdulmajeed Al Smari, Deputy Minister for Protocol Affairs for the warm reception. pic.twitter.com/cZBtBIYBdW

— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) September 8, 2024

“India and the GCC enjoy a deep and multifaceted relationship, in areas including political, trade & investment, energy cooperation, cultural and people – to – people ties. The GCC region has emerged as a major trading partner for India and is home to a large Indian expatriate community, numbering around 8.9 million. The Foreign Ministers meeting will be an opportunity to review and deepen institutional cooperation between India and the GCC across various sectors,” the MEA said.

Mr Jaishankar will thereafter visit Berlin, Germany, for a two-day trip from September 10 to 11. This will be his third visit as Minister to Berlin. “Both India and Germany share a robust Strategic Partnership and Germany is one of India’s prominent trading partners and among the largest Foreign Direct Investors,” the MEA said.

He will also travel to Geneva, Switzerland for an official visit from September 12 to 13. During the visit, he will meet heads and representatives of international organisations with whom India is actively engaged.

Notably, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, will come to India for a two-day official visit from September 9 to 10. The Crown Prince will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi to hold discussions on bilateral cooperation.

Mr Jaishankar on Friday spoke about revitalising the connections between India and the Mediterranean region.

“It is vital that as we move forward, we embrace this collaborative spirit, uphold open communication, and commit to shared goals. Together we can address today’s challenges, unlock new opportunities and build a resilient and connected future,” he said at the CII India Mediterranean Business Conclave.

He underscored the need for strengthening security and defence cooperation between India and the Mediterranean region, given the high volatility and uncertainty in the global economy. 

The Mediterranean region has a vast green hydrogen and green ammonia potential. Highlighting this, Mr Jaishankar talked about energy cooperation as another important dimension of collaboration.

New Delhi:

India has targeted to train 175 civil servants from Maldives through tailor-made programmes in specific disciplines, according to an official statement issued today.

A bilateral meeting was held today between National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG) Director General V Srinivas and Maldives Civil Service Commission President Mohamed Nasih to firm up the implementation modalities of the India-Maldives MoU for imparting training to the civil servants of Maldives over a period of five years 2024 -2029, it said.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed and renewed between the NCGG, government of India, and the Civil Service Commission (CSC), Republic of Maldives, for capacity building programs for 1,000 Maldivian civil servants on August 9 in Male, Maldives.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Maldives’ Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer renewed the MoU for the period 2024-2029 as part of the development partnership discussions between both nations, said the statement issued by the Personnel Ministry.

In view of the need of the CSC Maldives, the NCGG agreed to having customised programmes for middle level civil servants and senior civil servants of Maldives, it added.

“The CSC Maldives requested for tailor made specialised programmes in specific disciplines for which NCGG will be designing need-based modules. Five (5) programmes will be held in the year 2024-25 targeting a total of 175 civil servants,” the statement said.

In 2024, the NCGG had achieved the remarkable milestone by fulfilling the mandate of training a total of 1,000 civil servants, including Permanent Secretaries, Secretary Generals and high-level delegates from Maldives over a total of 32 capacity building programmes in field administration for the civil servants of Maldives, including programmes for Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and for Information Commission Office of Maldives (ICOM) under the MoU signed on June 8, 2019.

Recognising the success of this collaboration, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maldives, had requested for the renewal of the MoU for another five years, the statement said.

This renewed partnership will continue to enhance the capabilities of Maldives civil servants in public policy, governance and field administration, further strengthening the ties between India and the Maldives, it added.

The NCGG is committed to fostering knowledge exchange and collaboration on public policy and governance across several countries.

Its mid-career capacity building programs emphasise citizen-centric governance, improving service delivery and promoting innovations in governance. These programs also showcase India’s best practices in digital empowerment of citizens and digital transformation of institutions.
 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

India has targeted to train 175 civil servants from Maldives through tailor-made programmes in specific disciplines, according to an official statement issued today.

A bilateral meeting was held today between National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG) Director General V Srinivas and Maldives Civil Service Commission President Mohamed Nasih to firm up the implementation modalities of the India-Maldives MoU for imparting training to the civil servants of Maldives over a period of five years 2024 -2029, it said.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed and renewed between the NCGG, government of India, and the Civil Service Commission (CSC), Republic of Maldives, for capacity building programs for 1,000 Maldivian civil servants on August 9 in Male, Maldives.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Maldives’ Foreign Minister Moosa Zameer renewed the MoU for the period 2024-2029 as part of the development partnership discussions between both nations, said the statement issued by the Personnel Ministry.

In view of the need of the CSC Maldives, the NCGG agreed to having customised programmes for middle level civil servants and senior civil servants of Maldives, it added.

“The CSC Maldives requested for tailor made specialised programmes in specific disciplines for which NCGG will be designing need-based modules. Five (5) programmes will be held in the year 2024-25 targeting a total of 175 civil servants,” the statement said.

In 2024, the NCGG had achieved the remarkable milestone by fulfilling the mandate of training a total of 1,000 civil servants, including Permanent Secretaries, Secretary Generals and high-level delegates from Maldives over a total of 32 capacity building programmes in field administration for the civil servants of Maldives, including programmes for Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and for Information Commission Office of Maldives (ICOM) under the MoU signed on June 8, 2019.

Recognising the success of this collaboration, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maldives, had requested for the renewal of the MoU for another five years, the statement said.

This renewed partnership will continue to enhance the capabilities of Maldives civil servants in public policy, governance and field administration, further strengthening the ties between India and the Maldives, it added.

The NCGG is committed to fostering knowledge exchange and collaboration on public policy and governance across several countries.

Its mid-career capacity building programs emphasise citizen-centric governance, improving service delivery and promoting innovations in governance. These programs also showcase India’s best practices in digital empowerment of citizens and digital transformation of institutions.
 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)