India to finance building of Eswatini`s new parliament

New Delhi: India will help finance the new parliament building of Eswatini with the Export-Import Bank of India (Exim Bank) extending a line of credit of $108.28 million. Eswatini is a landlocked country in Southern Africa and has Mozambique and South Africa as its neighbours. The country was earlier known by the name Swaziland.

The line of credit (LoC) agreement for this was signed between the General Manager of Exim Bank, Nirmit Ved, and the Finance minister of  Eswatini, Neal H Rijkenberg.

All in all, the number of LoC extended by EXIM bank to Africa's smallest country now stands at four, with a total value of $176.58 million. The MoUs cover the building of an Information Technology park and agricultural development.

India is also involved in the financing of new Parliament in Burundi's national capital Gitega and two ministerial buildings in Bujumbura, the country's largest city and main port.

In the past, India was involved in the construction of the Parliament building of Afghanistan as well. The building was inaugurated in 2015 by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and PM Narendra Modi.

A total of 211 LoCs amounting to $12.85 billion have been extended to the African countries in various infrastructure projects by New Delhi.

The Exim Bank has extended 272 LoCs, covering 62 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the CIS with credit commitments of around $26.84 billion.