Guwahati, May 17: The Government of Assam and the World Bank have reaffirmed their long-standing partnership to advance agricultural reforms and investment in the state. A high-level meeting was held to discuss the next phase of the Assam Agribusiness and Rural Transformation Project (APART), with a focus on modernising agriculture, empowering farmers, and boosting private sector engagement.

The World Bank delegation was led by Farbod Youseffi, Senior Agribusiness Specialist (South Asia) and Task Team Leader for APART, and Andrew Goodland, Lead Agriculture Specialist (India and Afghanistan). The State Project Director of ARIAS Society also participated in the meeting.

As part of India’s broader vision of Viksit Bharat 2047, the discussions underscored the need for Assam’s agricultural community to adopt innovative technologies and sustainable practices. The World Bank team emphasised that the upcoming phase of APART presents an opportunity for transformative change, particularly through the mobilisation of private investment.

Farbod Youseffi highlighted the potential for increased private sector involvement, suggesting that private capital could be infused to scale up innovations and expand agribusiness operations in the state.

The Assam government reiterated its commitment to strengthening cooperation with the World Bank in agriculture, agribusiness, and commercial ventures. It also expressed a strong interest in initiating a new agriculture-focused project, building on APART’s success. The initial concept of this proposed initiative will be submitted to Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for further direction, with the World Bank pledging full support for its development and implementation.

The meeting also stressed the importance of a strategic approach to align ongoing projects with new initiatives and explored ways to engage youth through emerging tools and technologies in agriculture.