IslamicFinance.de

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) will allocate a 144 million euro loan for wastewater projects in the Iranian southern Fars province. For that purpose, the IDB and the Fars province's Water and Wastewater Company have signed a memorandum of understanding on the issue. The company will implement wastewater projects in the Darab, Fasa, Sepidan, Abadeh, Neiriz and Firouzabad cities of the province using the IDB`s loan. The IDB has already allocated some 800 million euros of loans in total for Iran's water and wastewater projects, in Mashhad city, Qom and Kashan, and Tehran among others. The IDB has paid more than 3 billion euros to Iran for implementing its projects so far, of which 70 percent were spent on dam building and water and wastewater projects of the energy ministry.

The President of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), Dr Ahmad Mohamed Ali, and the UK Senior Minister of State for the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, Baroness Warsi of Dewsbury, view positively the fast growth of Islamic finance in the UK. During a visit to the IDB headquarters in Jeddah, Baroness Warsi told the IDB President that significant progress has been achieved by the UK Government in terms of Islamic finance. The UK is close to issuing its first sovereign sukuk which will possibly be issued by mid-2014, she said. Dr Ali and the Minister reiterated their commitment to the growing IDB-UK partnership in the area of development assistance and the economic empowerment of women. They also agreed to explore potential partnership opportunities in the development of Awqaf.

Islamic Development Bank (IDB) has picked seven banks to arrange meetings with fixed income investors ahead of a potential sukuk issue. The banks are CIMB, Commerzbank, First Gulf Bank, HSBC, Natixis, National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Standard Chartered. IDB will hold roadshows in the Middle East and Asia commencing February 23, with a dollar-denominated Islamic bond to follow subject to market conditions. The AAA-rated bank last sold a sukuk in May, when it priced a $1 billion five-year Islamic bond with a profit rate of 1.535 per cent.

The Islamic Development Bank Group (IDB) announced its intention to invest into four new EXPO-2017-oriented projects in Kazakhstan in 2014 through the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD). ICD, Baiterek Holding and LGK Holdings signed a memorandum to create the Central Asian Fund of Renewable Energy with the initial capital of $50 million. Moreover, ICD is going to cooperate with the Investment Fund of Kazakhstan in the development of float-glass production in southern Kazakhstan, a project worth$200 million. Besides, ICD will provide $10 million for procurement of manufacturing lines and raw materials during the first year of a new Aluminum Extrusion Plant's operations. ICD has also achieved an agreement with OLZHA Holding to cooperate in the construction of a grain terminal and elevator western Kazakhstan. The construction is expected to begin this summer.

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) is considering developing an Islamic Centre of Excellence at the Tun Razak Exchange in the greater Kuala Lumpur in three to five years. The centre of excellence will reportedly provide services in Islamic finance and banking-related transactions. The project will be developed in collaboration with the Malaysian government.

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) celebrated its 40th anniversary with a reception for consuls general organized with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Makkah region, at the bank's headquarters in Jeddah on Wednesday. IDB President Ahmed Muhammad Ali said this was the start of planning for the next 10 years after consulting member states and Muslim communities in nonmember countries. The bank's board of governors would discuss the program of action at its next meeting in June. Ali said the bank prioritizes projects in the least developed member countries, and projects in education. IDB’s commitment to help boost economic growth is evident from the rise in total financing from $8.3 billion in 2011 to $9.8 billion in 2012, an 18.4 percent increase.

Marking the international anti-corruption day, IDB Vice-President (Operations) Mr. Birama Boubacar Sidibe reiterated the need to recognize fraud and corruption as one of the greatest obstacles to socio-economic development and undermining policies and projects aimed at alleviating poverty world-wide. He stated that the IDB Group takes pride that its policies and programs are in line with the core Islamic values of integrity, ethics and preventing fraud and corruption. The event was organized by IDB's Group Integrity Office (GIO) which holds annual awareness raising activities. In line with its fraud and corruption prevention mandate, the IDB Group has adopted several key anti-corruption policies and guidelines to fight corruption. A multi-lingual 24/7 "Speak-up Hotline" to report corruption is expected to be launched in IDB shortly.

Somaliland President Ahmed Mohamed Silanyo has received a delegation from Islamic Development Bank (IDB) as the president congratulated the delegation for the ongoing development projects run by the Organization in the country. The delegation from the IDB has been in the country for the last 4 days. The Islamic Development Bank is currently implementing several ongoing development assignments including projects relating enhancing Hargeisa main hospital's infrastructures, as well as, Hargeisa and Gabiley Orphanage centers. The delegation and the President of Somaliland have agreed to continue expanding their co-existance and make their cooperation more effective than ever before.

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) has launched The Assistance For Trade in the Arab States (AFTIAS) aimed at boosting trade and economy as well as creating jobs in the Arab countries. Dr. Waleed Al-Wohaib, CEO of the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) and Chairman of Board of the initiative, said the ITFC would work side-by-side with international organizations that would implement the initiative to guarantee its success. The initiative consists of five UN agencies: the UN Development Program (UNDP), the UN Conference of Trade And Development (UNCTAD), the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the International Labor Organization (ILO), and the International Trade Center. It also include the Arab League, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the Agadir Technical Unit and the Arab Maghreb Union, in addition to seven donor parties.

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) has announced that it intends to list Dh37 billion sukuk programme on Nasdaq Dubai. The move represents a momentous addition to the constant successes of ‘Dubai the Capital of Islamic Economy’ initiative. Dr Ahmad Mohamed Ali Al Madani, president of the IDB, said that Dubai’s exchange and regulatory architecture together with its commitment to providing Islamic finance solutions of high quality make it a natural home for IDB's securities. It is noteworthy that Dubai capital markets have successfully attracted sukuk issues of Dh46 billion since the launch of ‘Dubai, the global sukuk centre’, and this number is expected to reach Dh60 billion by year end.

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) is considering setting up an Islamic bond issuance programme in Dubai. It would be the IDB's first sukuk programme in a Middle Eastern country. While discussions are at an early stage, the IDB has seen growing demand for its sukuk and already plans to expand its main London-listed programme to $10 billion from the current $6.5 billion.The IDB sukuk could offer a much-needed boost to trading volumes and encourage issuers from outside the emirate to choose Dubai as their listing venue. Support for sukuk issuance is part of a broad cooperation agreement signed in July between the IDB and the government of Dubai.

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) plans to increase its sukuk program to $10 billion from $6.5 billion, to keep pace with demand for investment-grade paper from the international institution. The Jeddah-based lender plans to make the increase official in November subject to clearance from regulators in Britain, where its multi-currency program is listed. An expanded sukuk program would help the IDB increase its profile among global investors and secure similar pricing levels to other development banks such as the World Bank and European Investment Bank, which can borrow at slightly lower rates because they are more frequent issuers. IDB sukuk are highly sought after by Islamic banks.

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) is actively involved in supporting African governments’ efforts to diversify funding through Islamic capital markets, according to Kodeidja Malle Diallo, director, group risk management department of IDB. n addition, the IDB Group and group entities are committed in supporting development projects and capital market linked Islamic fund raising efforts. IDB Group’s portfolio investments in sovereign sukuks will be purely driven by credit worthiness of issuing sovereigns. Despite the strong potential for developing Islamic capital markets in Africa, the plans are moving at a slow pace. At a political level, many countries are yet to agree on what state assets should become collateral (underlying) for a sukuk issue. Additionally, relatively low yields in conventional bonds could also emerge as a challenge for sukuk issues in these markets.

Nigeria's Jaiz Bank is currently devising a strategy, leveraging on its relationship with the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), which will enable it invest and help facilitate financing of the nation’s power sector. Representatives of IDB are expected in Abuja for advanced talks. $3.4 billion is currently being sort by government to bridge the yawning infrastructure gap in the electricity transmission sub-sector, considered to be the weakest link in the power value chain. Last month, minister of power, Chinedu Nebo, suggested that Nigerian banks should consider forming consortiums to provide the much needed funding. Jaiz Bank as an entity is on its own not able to finance such large ticket transactions, so leveraging on this relationship with IDB is crucial to being able to invest in the power sector.

The Islamic Development (IDB) has approved financing of projects worth $747 million in various countries. The projects include $200 million aid for Rades Electric and Gas station project in Tunis for the development of energy sector in Tunisia , projects worth $190 million in six Iranian cities and $110 million irrigation projects in Egypt aimed to increase agricultural production in rural communities. The IDB is also providing $100 million to build an airport in Burkina Faso. The educational aid granted by the bank includes $72.5 million for development of the Lebanese University in Beirut, and $10 million for Arabic and French bilingual education project in Chad. Moreover, the bank approved several other projects in member and non-member countries. IDB's executive directors also reviewed the arrangements for the celebration of the 40th founding anniversary of the bank next year.

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) will boost its sukuk programme by more than 50 per cent by year-end as demand for financing from member countries, including Turkey and Morocco, grows. IDB aims to raise its medium-term note programme to US$10 billion (RM33 billion) from US$6.5 billion, so that it is ready to tap the market at any time. The increase will be the largest by value since the programme was started in 2005 by the almost 40-year-old bank.

The Islamic Development Bank and Saudi Fund for Development have provided finances amounting to $ 21.7 billion for 90 projects in the Bank's Member States in Africa, Asia, and Middle East. In its annual report for the year 2012, the Islamic Development Bank pointed out that the projects were in fields of infrastructures, agriculture, rural development, health, education, transport, energy, and water.

The Islamic Development Bank recently allocated $32.6 million to stop children in Pakistan from suffering paralysis or death at the heads of polio. The disbursement was the first of the $227 million the IDB approved for polio eradication efforts in Pakistan. The disbursement was made through the WHO on August 3. The contribution will be used to help train and support more than 200,000 health workers and volunteers to immunize 33 million children in Pakistan with the oral polio vaccine. The money will also be used to improve immunization services for other vaccine-preventable diseases and to strengthen disease surveillance throughout Pakistan.The WHO expressed its appreciation to the IDB and the OIC as important partners in the growing global effort to eradicate polio.

The founders of Bosna Bank International (BBI), the first bank in Bosnia and Herzegovina to do business based on Islamic principles, are to inject an additional 15 million euros to its capital stock to ensure business growth, according to the bank's director Amer Bukvic. The Islamic Development Bank (IDB), the Dubai Islamic Bank and the Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank had decided to inject fresh capital into BBI to the amount of 30 million convertible marks (EUR 15.3m). The fresh capital will be used to reinforce the bank's position in the medium-sized banking segment on the Bosnian banking market. BBI's assets will amount to 500 million convertible marks (EUR 255.7m) after the capital increase. Moreover, Bukvic announced that the bank would be releasing loans to the value of 300 million convertible marks (EUR 153.4m).

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) and its poverty reduction arm, the Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development (ISFD), have now extended more than $100 million in financing to help eight African nations combat extreme poverty, improve public health and achieve more sustainable development. In each of these projects, host governments will partner with the IsDB, the Earth Institute and Millennium Promise to carry out the projects. The combined $104 million will finance three major programs: The ISFD’s new flagship Sustainable Villages Program (SVP) in Chad, Mozambique, and Sudan ($40 million), Scale-ups of the Millennium Villages Project in Mali, Senegal and Uganda ($29 million), Implementation of the Drylands Initiative in Djibouti, Somalia and Uganda ($35 million). The $104 million will be provided in the form of Islamic finance to the recipient countries, except in the case of a grant provided to Somalia. All of these countries are members of the bank.