South Africa hosts the 9th annual meeting of the New Development Bank (NDB). NDB is betting on increasing the use of local currencies to ensure sustainable development of the global economy, said its President Dilma Rousseff.

“One of the main focuses of the NDB is to increase the use of local currencies. We have decided that up to 30 per cent of the bank’s total funding will take place in local currencies”

Dilma Rousseff President of New Development Bank

Rousseff said the NDB is now exploring the possibility of creating digital platforms for mutual payments between different countries. 

She underlined that there was a need to reduce the debt levels of a number of developing countries and to channel the new funds to create a new industrial base in them, for research and innovation. 

“Our bank can play a significant role in addressing these challenges,” she remarked.

New Development Bank is a multilateral development bank aimed at mobilising resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS.

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