UAE Reiterates Commitment to IDB

Jakarta, 13 Sha’ban 1437/20 May 2016 (MINA) – The UAE participated in the 41st annual meeting of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) board of governors, which officially started in Jakarta, Indonesia, led by Obaid bin Humaid Al Tayer, Cabinet Member and UAE Minister of State for Financial Affairs.

The UAE delegation included Khalid Ali Al Bustani, Assistant Undersecretary of international financial relation at the Ministry of Finance and a number of heads of departments and specialised employees at the ministry, Khaleej Times quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

The meeting saw the participation of over 57 countries, along with their IDB board of governors from finance and economic ministries, general managers of Arabic Islamic financial institutions, representatives from the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, as well as financial and economic experts.

During the meeting, Al Tayer delivered a speech in which he extended his gratitude to Dr Ahmad Mohamed Ali Al Madani, IDB Group president. He then stressed the geopolitical challenges and changes and their impact on the overall development. Al Tayer also addressed other challenges witnessed by state members such as the fluctuation in commodity prices and lower growth rates that require assessment by IDB member states, specifically in terms of the impact of these changes. Al Tayer also highlighted the importance of combining efforts to raise the response level of services provided.

Al Tayer said: “The IDB Group is committed to provide innovative programmes to overcome challenges faced by Muslim countries and benefit from member states’ expertise in this respective field. The institutions under the IDB’s umbrella should work to raise their financial resources, develop financial and funding tools, and monitor reforms implementing within 10-year strategy framework, to ensure meeting the needs of the people, raise standards of living, and achieve integration between development goals and requirements.”

Al Tayer concluded his speech by highlighting the UAE’s commitment to strengthen its partnership strategies with the IDB Group and the institutions under its umbrella to support member states’ development. He stressed the importance of the IDB Group’s achievements in expanding funding activities and growth of its operations, which increased to reach $12.1 million, representing an increase by 13 per cent compared to last year.(T/P008/R04)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)