The Board of Executive Directors of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) has approved $2.12 billion to finance new development projects in member countries.
Sixteen projects in key strategic sectors such as transport, energy, health and education in addition to youth development/entrepreneurship and employment were approved at the 353rd board meeting chaired by IsDB President and Group Chairman, Dr. Muhammad Al Jasser.
The projects aimed at supporting socio-economic development and promoting sustainability in member countries.
Speaking during the meeting, the IsDB president highlighted the significance of the approved projects, and their transformative impacts on improving transportation, health, education, and energy, as well as fostering regional economic integration.
Dr. Al Jasser told the Board members that IsDB is working to deepen the Sukuk (Islamic bonds) market to enable the Bank to finance more projects, be they green, sustainability, or ordinary Sukuk.
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He said, “Top among the approvals is IsDB’s EUR 803.3 million (US$ 845.57 million) financing to Indonesia to contribute to “Strengthening Indonesia’s Health Care Referral Network Project”.
The objective of the project is to enhance the physical and service capacity of the health referral system in Indonesia, ensuring that everyone has equal access to quality healthcare services in all districts, cities, and provinces.
“The IsDB Board also approved financing of EUR 187.84 million (US$ 204.00 million) to Morocco for the ‘Construction of Guercif-Nador Highway Project’ in the Kingdom of Morocco.
“The project aims to contribute to improving the connectivity of the Oriental region and the Nador West Med port complex by completing the construction 104km of highway including 17 bridges and 53 flyovers by 2029.”
Also, among the key approved projects are IsDB’s financing contribution of EUR 136.86 million (US$ 144.00 million) to Burkina Faso and US$ 106 million to Uganda to improve the living environment of the populations and support the transport sector in the two beneficiary countries.
However, the Board approved the following projects: EUR 55 million (US$ 58.0 million) to the Republic of Mali to help enhancing the country’s electricity transmission grid via modernization and expanding of the high voltage transmission infrastructure; EUR 64.30 million (US$ 70.0 million) for the Republic of Chad and EUR 25.24 million (US$ 27.13 million) to the Republic of Togo to support the higher education sector in these two African member countries.
Others are $16.90million in slums Upgrading and Integrated Urban Development Project in Bouloas, Djibouti to improve the livelihoods of people living in slum areas through developing basic economic infrastructure; $79 million to improve access to affordable, resilient, and energy-efficient housing for the underserved population, as well as to support the Shariah mortgage development in the Kyrgyz Republic.
$40 million was approved to contribute towards supporting sustainable and green economic transformation of the Maldivian economy through improved access to Islamic finance while embracing social and environmental responsibilities.
Also US$ 200 million to deliver beneficiary‐driven, multi‐hazard resilient, reconstruction of core housing units to the populace affected by the 2022 floods in Sindh province in Pakistan, as US$27 million was improved the quality of life of the people living along the project road as well as contribute to the development of the international transit traffic potential of Tajikistan.
The IsDB Board also approved US$ 300 million in financing for two projects for Türkiye earthquake-affected areas:
US$100 million to support the economic recovery of earthquake-affected industrial firms in various sectors and thereby contribute to enhancing the resilience of productivity and economic growth of the country; US$ 200 million to support Türkiye’s efforts towards the rapid delivery of health facilities and services to improve the quality of life of the earthquake-affected population.
Furthermore, the IsDB Board reviewed several technical reports including the progress report of the IsDB Group Food Security Response Program (FSRP) which aimed at supporting member countries in better averting the ongoing food crisis and further strengthening their resilience to future food security shocks. The Board was also updated on “Various Initiatives to Enhance IsDB’s Products and Services”.
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