FINANCE - IDB members urged to support ISFD

JEDDAH: A meeting of experts at the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) on Wednesday urged member countries to fulfill their pledges to the capital of the Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development (ISFD), which was established for poverty alleviation in the Islamic world.

The two-day meeting came up with a number of recommendations including establishment of a group of eminent figures to act as a high- level advocacy and resource mobilization vehicle for the ISFD, which will be mandated to undertake road shows for mobilizing resources for the fund.

The ISFD was established by the OIC (Organization of the Islamic Countries) extraordinary summit in Makkah in December 2005 and launched in 2007 with the objective of fighting poverty, illiteracy, unemployment and diseases such as malaria and AIDS in IDB member countries.

The fund's target capital has been set at $10 billion of which $2.63 billion has been so far committed by the IDB and its members. Saudi Arabia gave the largest amount of $1 billion while Kuwait and Iran contributed $300 million and $100 million respectively.

Expressing gratitude to member countries which have already contributed to the fund, the experts' group urged completion of the partly accomplished pledges as well as scaling up of contributions commensurate with their financial capabilities in order to achieve the fund’s objectives.

Speaking at the opening session, IDB President Ahmad Mohamed Ali underscored the significance of the group and the role it plays in devising recommendations for assisting the fund to define its challenges and future prospects.

The ISFD total approvals have thus far reached $515 million covering infrastructural, agricultural, educational, professional training and SME projects. The fund is currently pursuing two five-year thematic programs for micro-finance and vocational training worth a total of $500 million each.

Source : http://arabnews.com/economy/article226130.ece - Dec 30, 2010