We remember Milindo Chakrabarti as one of the most thoughtful and committed advocates of Global Public Investment (GPI) – not merely as a question of mobilising finance, but as a deeper process of social and political integration at the global level. Milindo was clear that global challenges demand collective responses grounded in equality, mutual responsibility, and trust. For him, GPI was not a technical adjustment to existing development finance, but a shift in mindset.
He was a member of the Steering Committee of the Expert Working Group on Global Public Investment (EWG-GPI), which led an extensive global consultation process in 2020–2021. The task of the Expert Working Group was clear and demanding: to deliberate on the GPI concept and ensure it was both representative and robust. Milindo played a key role in this process – bringing intellectual rigor, openness, and a steady commitment to equity and inclusion.
Under the Steering Committee’s leadership, the Expert Working Group completed its mandate, laying the foundations for what has since become the Global Public Investment Network. Milindo, together with O.P. Jindal Global University, was deeply involved in the co-creation of this network and a founding contributor to its work.
As he wrote in the Time for GPI report: “Grounded in the principle of universal access, GPI has the potential to transform current challenges into opportunities, enhancing trust.” This sentence captures much of what he stood for: a belief in cooperation, in public goods and the reduction of public bads over narrow interests, and in institutions shaped collectively rather than imposed.
Milindo’s legacy within Global Public Investment is not only institutional, but intellectual. The ideas he helped shape continue to guide the GPI community, and his commitment to fairness, dialogue, and shared responsibility remains embedded in the work ahead. His ideas continue to shape the GPI community, and his insistence on trust, reciprocity, and shared responsibility remains central to the work ahead.
At the same time, those who worked with him will remember not only his intellectual clarity but also his humility and warmth: he was deeply approachable, attentive to others, and generous with his time. A colleague who listened carefully, engaged seriously, and cared genuinely.
Our deepest condolences to his family, friends, and all who had the privilege of working with him.
Global Public Investment Network