World Bank clears $1.5 billion package to boost India's structural reforms, private sector jobs

New Delhi: The World Bank's board has cleared a $1.5 billion financing package to aid India's structural reforms and boost private sector-led job creation, the multilateral lender said on Friday. It will also support economic growth under its Development Policy Financing (DPF) operation.

The DPF operation can create job opportunities for about 11 million youths who will be entering the labour market annually over the next two decades, the bank said in a statement.

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This operation builds on several structural reforms initiated in recent years, including tax simplification, trade integration, and legislative and regulatory reforms to improve ease of living and the ease of doing business, the global body said. It also supports tax and regulatory reforms that reduce barriers to entrepreneurship, among other steps.

'Maturing phase of governance'

Economic reforms in India in recent years, the World Bank said, reflect a maturing phase of the country's governance-from expanding regulatory frameworks to delivering measurable outcomes with focus on simplifying systems, reducing compliance burdens and improving predictability for citizens and businesses.

From simplified tax regime and next-generation goods and services tax to broader and more inclusive MSME (micro, small and medium enterprises) definitions and business compliances, "reforms were designed to make every-day economic interactions smoother, faster, and more transparent, strengthening policy certainty and trust in institutions", the World Bank said.

"Collectively, these measures illustrate a governance approach rooted in outcome-driven policymaking, fostering trust, predictability, and long-term economic resilience," it said.

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Between 2017-18 and 2023-24 India's unemployment rate dropped sharply to 3.2% from 6%, and around 9 million women entered the regular wage employment, "underscoring the government's emphasis on inclusive and sustained labour empowerment". The country added 150 million net jobs during these years.

"India is well paced in its reforms agenda to unlock private capital and create jobs in a challenging global context," said Johannes Zutt, World Bank vice-president for South Asia.