New Delhi, Apr 25: The World Bank on Wednesday announced the signing of a loan agreement with India for IBRD credit of USD 125 (equivalent) for the "Innovate in India for Inclusiveness Project".

The Loan Agreement was signed by Sameer Kumar Khare, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs on behalf of Government of India and Hisham Abdo, Acting Country Director, World Bank (India) on behalf of the World Bank.

With objectives to nurture indigenous innovation, foster local product development and accelerate commercialization process by bridging critical skill and infrastructure gaps to promote affordable and innovative healthcare products generation for inclusive development and increasing competitiveness in India, the agreement will support consortia of public, private, and the academic institutions to overcome the key market failures currently holding back the development of an innovative biopharmaceutical and medical devices industry in India.

The project consists of the following parts:

-Strengthening of a pilot to the market innovation ecosystem

-Acceleration of the pilot-to-market process for specific products and

-Project Management and Monitoring & Evaluation.