The 15th Annual Bank Conference on Development Economics concluded in Bangalore on Friday with World Bank officials saying that hastening the economic reforms process is key to accelerated development in India.

"India's speed of reforms compares favourably with other parts of the world but it could be faster," Gobind Nankani, World Bank vice-president for poverty reduction and economic management, said as participants wound up discussions, which centred around the theme "accelerating development".

Added Sadiq Ahmed, the bank's South Asia chief economist: "Outcome of the reforms in India is good but there is need for acceleration."

The three-day ABCDE was held for the first time in a developing country, reflecting the growing importance of research done in these countries and the need to bring such conferences closer to participants in the developing world.

Director General of the National Council of Applied Economic Research, Suman Bery, expressed the view that India needed to "engage" in Doha round of the World Trade Organisation rather than having an "attitude of we are not interested in another round."

Bery said India had an important stake in the WTO round and depended more on multilateral negotiations than neighbours like China.

"We have to be proactive and not reactive," Bery said.