The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) launched a $500 million fund to strengthen science, technology and innovation in the Muslim World. The launch of the fund was made at the IDB's 43rd Annual Meeting in Tunis. The fund had been announced for the first time in Kazakhstan in September 2017, by the IDB President, Dr. Bandar Hajjar. He said 57 IDB member countries face challenges in development and many of them could not solve their problems on their own. He added that the IDB wants to be a catalyst so that people can lead the process of development. Dr. Hayat Sindi, chief scientific adviser to the IDB president, said the bank would like to give every scientist an opportunity to provide solutions to development challenges. She said the aim of the fund was to give a boost to creative minds.
The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) has launched 'Engage', a new digital platform to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). IsDB President Dr. Bandar Hajjar announced the launch together with UN Under-Secretary-General of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), Dr. Shamshad Akhtar and Dr. Hayat Sindi, Chief Scientific Advisor to IsDB. Engage offers three main services: Match Making, Technology Transfer and Call for Innovation. The platform will focus on six SDGs, food security, healthier lives, inclusive and equitable education, sustainable management of water, access to affordable and clean energy, and sustainable industrialisation across the developing world. IsDB has also established a new Fund, the Transform Fund, which will finance innovative ideas linked to development solutions. A landmark Memorandum of Understanding was signed between IsDB and ESCAP to build a global network of scientists, technologists, innovators, entrepreneurs and investors to achieve sustainable development.
The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) has launched a new digital platform to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The "Engage" platform's launch was announced in London by the President of IsDB, Dr. Bandar Hajjar, Secretary of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), Dr. Shamshad Akhtar, and Dr. Hayat Sindi, Chief Scientific Advisor to IsDB. The platform will focus on six SDGs: achieving greater food security, healthier lives, inclusive and equitable education, sustainable management of water, access to affordable and clean energy, and sustainable industrialisation across the developing world. To ensure its members have access to financing for innovation, IsDB has established a new Fund, called The Transform Fund. It will provide seed money for innovators, start-ups and SMEs, as well as funding partnerships between researchers and entrepreneurs. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between IsDB and ESCAP to work together to achieve sustainable and inclusive development.