Jaishankar tells CELAC meeting India's GDP more than doubled in a decade

At a meeting of foreign ministers of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, or CELAC, held around the UN General Assembly in New York, India reaffirmed its growing global influence and its commitments. The meeting was co-chaired by India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Uruguay's Foreign Minister Mario Lubetkin.

Addressing the meeting, Jaishankar said India's emergence as a major economic power is not limited to India alone, but is becoming a major force for the growth and prosperity of the entire Global South, or developing countries.

The external affairs minister set out India's growth over the past decade to those present. He said India's GDP has more than doubled in the last ten years and the country's growth rate has remained consistently strong and stable. According to him, India today has the world's largest and fast-skilling human resource base, a domestic market with huge potential, strong digital infrastructure and continuously growing technological capability. Jaishankar said this strength has made India a major engine of global growth and fully capable of helping developing countries on various fronts.

In his address, Jaishankar said India's partnership with countries of the Global South is not driven by narrow national interest or political self-interest, but is a mark of India's longstanding belief in and commitment to international solidarity and shared prosperity. He said that whenever countries in the region have faced natural or medical crises, India has stepped in to help in a spirit of fraternity.

As examples, he cited last year's devastating Cyclone Melissa in Jamaica and this year's major earthquake in Venezuela. According to Jaishankar, whether it was sending a military hospital to Venezuela immediately after the earthquake or running relief projects for the livelihoods of people in Caribbean countries devastated by the cyclone, India has always taken the initiative. He also said India has reinforced its identity as the "pharmacy of the world" by delivering essential lifesaving medicines to several Latin American countries on time.

The high-level meeting of foreign ministers from CELAC's 33 member countries held detailed discussions on further economic and technological partnership. India said India and CELAC countries are excellent partners for each other, since India has advanced technology, a pharmaceutical sector, skilled human resources and digital capability, while the CELAC region holds vast reserves of rare minerals, sustainable energy, and agricultural and food resources. The growing middle class on both sides has created significant opportunities for trade and investment.

All the ministers at the meeting agreed to strengthen partnership in health, pharmaceuticals, food and agriculture, energy and resources, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and digital technology. India said work is progressing rapidly on the proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with Chile, a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Peru, and a trade agreement with MERCOSUR to ease trade.

CELAC countries also fully backed global initiatives launched by India to address environmental and climate change challenges, including the International Solar Alliance, the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA), the Global Biofuels Alliance and Mission LiFE. India said these steps are proving crucial in building a balanced, inclusive and just order worldwide.