India announces aid for least developed nations

It is being attended by representatives,including foreign ministers,from all 48 countries.

India on Friday announced additional assistance to least developed countries (LDCs),which included the establishment of a special fund of $5 million and a $500-million credit line for developmental projects. It also announced five scholarships to each of the 48 LDC countries.

External Affairs Minister S M Krishna announced this at the two-day India-LDC ministerial conference that started in New Delhi on Friday. It is being attended by representatives,including foreign ministers,from all 48 countries.

It is time that we take up the cause of the LDCs on a war-footing and work together. Without the progress of these countries,there can be no equitable global growth and prosperity, he said while inaugurating the conference.

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Krishna is holding bilateral meetings with foreign ministers of 35 countries on the sidelines of the conference. The heads of the visiting delegations called on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday morning.

Apart from LDCs,Finland,Australia,Slovenia,China,Hungary,Croatia,Georgia,European Union,the US,Germany and Hungary are also attending the meeting as observers.