Suriname Seeks to Expand Islamic Banking and Finance
Jakarta, Indonesia, 15 Sya’ban 1437/23 May 2016 (MINA) – The Surinamese delegation headed by minister of finance, Gillmore Hoefdraad, who just attended the 41st annual meeting of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) in Jakarta, Indonesia, last week, had a fruitful and robust engagement at the meeting, including the development of Islamic banking and finance in Suriname.
Hoefdraad and his delegation discussed the US$1.78 billion that the IsDB group has agreed to lend Suriname that will finance various projects over the next three years.
The minister thanked the IsDB for the support it has offered Suriname to tackle the economic crisis facing the country. In his address to the body, Hoefdraad explained some of the measures that his government has taken to address the economic situation in Suriname.
Hoefdraad in his speech also welcomed Guyana as the 57th member of the IsDB, Caribbeannewsnow.com was quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency as reporting on Monday.
Active working with Islamic Bank’s arms
Suriname is now actively working with the different arms of the Islamic Bank and the delegation met with some of them – including the Islamic Corporation for Development of the Private Sector (ICD), the Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC), which finances the import of products for energy and basic goods, and the Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC).
Suriname now wants to expand its involvement with the ICD, an arm of the Islamic Bank, to get involved in the issuance of Sukuk, which is ideal to finance infrastructure projects. Sukuk is the Arabic word for financial certificates (Islamic bonds) or Sharia compliant bonds that are structured to avoid interest, which is prohibited for Muslims. Besides some Muslim countries, Sukuk is used today in the United Kingdom, Hong Kong and Singapore.
An agreement of intent to this effect was signed between the ICD and Suriname in Jakarta.
The rice production reverse linkage project between the Islamic Bank, Malaysia and Suriname was featured as an example of successful South-South cooperation at the meeting.
A memorandum of understanding was concluded on behalf of the ministry of trade and industry of Suriname with the ICD. With the support of the ICD, they will work to design economic trade zones and value-chain industries, and to improve the business environment in Suriname.
And in a major development, the Trust Bank in Suriname will become a full Islamic bank and the first in Latin America and the Caribbean. Representatives of Trust Bank were also present in Jakarta. The Central Bank of Suriname this week approved the establishment of an Islamic financial institution. The IsDB will provide Trust Bank with technical and human resources support.
In the margin of the meeting a US$31 million loan agreement was signed between Suriname and the IsDB for a project entitled ‘Secondary and Technical Education Support in Suriname. This was approved some months ago and now the project is expected to move forward.
The minister of finance and members of his delegation also met the Indonesian and Malaysian authorities to further discuss bilateral cooperation.
Malaysia will assist Suriname in the field of agriculture and opportunities for support in the area of mobile electronic payment systems in remote areas were also discussed. Suriname has already received support through the Central Bank of Malaysia on cyber security.
With Indonesia, Suriname requested support in the area of animal breeding and further support in the area of legislation to support Islamic financing and promoting investment. (T/R07/R01)
Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)
