New Delhi, Aug 24 (IANS): India's growth rate is expected to be the highest in the near future, which will make it one of the biggest development opportunities, Finance Secretary T.V. Somanathan was quoted as saying at an event, according to reports.

He said that India is already the world's fifth largest economy and also the world's largest country in terms of population. Also, India's growth rate is much faster than the top four nations, namely the US, China, Japan and Germany.

"We can safely say that all four are likely to have lower growth rates versus India in the foreseeable future," Somanathan was quoted as saying.

India's domestic population and policies, though, will be key to ensuring that the country is able to harness the opportunities from growing much faster than the world, and from a young demographic, the Indian diaspora could play the role of a catalyst in these achievements, the Finance Secretary said.