The 6th World Congress on Rural and Agricultural Finance(WCRAF) which was inaugurated by the Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, was held in New Delhi from November 12-13, 2019. It was jointly organised by Asia-Pacific Rural and Agricultural Credit Association (APRACA), National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) and Ministry of Agriculture Farmers Welfare and Cooperation(MoAFWC).
Theme: The theme of the event was “Rural and Agricultural Finance: Critical Input to achieve Inclusive and Sustainable Development”.
Aim: The aim of the event was to bring the global stakeholders of rural and agriculture finance and to strengthen their business relations.
Key Speeches:
- Digitisation of NABARD’s SHG: NABARD’s largest Self Help Group(SHG)-Bank Linkage Programme working for the benefit of millions of rural women will soon be moved to a digital platform.
- Support to J&K and Ladakh: NABARD was directed to extend its support to the farmers in the states of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. It was also directed to focus on marketing of nutrients in the coastal areas of the country.
- FPO formation: India which provides agriculture credit worth $200 billion every year to the small and marginal farmers, will be enhanced effectively once the 10000 FPOs are formed. The formation of FPOs was announced during the 2019 union budget.
i.Co-organisers: The event was co-organised by 4 other associations. They were Confédération Internationale du Crédit Agricole (CICA); African Rural and Agricultural Credit Association (AFRACA); Asociación Latinoamericana de Instituciones Financieras Para el Desarrollo (ALIDE); and Near East–North Africa Regional Agricultural Credit Association (NENARACA).
ii.Members present: Shri Debasish Panda, additional Secretary of Department of agriculture, cooperation and farmer welfare;Dr Harsh Kumar Bhanwala, Chairman of NABARD; Mr Senarath Bandara, Chief Executive Officer(CEO), Bank of Ceylon(BoC) and Chairman of APRACA; Shri. Prasun Kumar Das, Secretary General of APRACA and others were present during the event.
About NABARD:
Fact- NABARD is entrusted with matters concerning policy planning and operations in the field of credit for agriculture and other economic activities in rural areas in India.
Committee- it was formed recommendations of B.Sivaraman Committee.
Headquarters- Mumbai.
Formation- July 12, 1982.
Act- National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development Act 1981.
About APRACA:
Fact- APRACA is a regional association that works for the promotion, cooperation, and facilitates mutual exchange of information in the field of rural finance.
Members present- APRACA comprises of 81 member institutions from 21 countries.
Headquarters- Manila, Philippines.
Chairman- Senarath Bandara.
Vice Chairman- Dr Harsh Kumar Bhanwala.
