IDB Group inks major deal to spur trade and investment

The World Islamic Economic Forum Foundation (WIFE Foundation) has exchanged a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group, with the objectives of fostering cooperation and socio-economic development within the Muslim world and a special emphasis on Muslim communities in non-OIC countries.
The MoU also aims to promote economic growth through trade and investment of intra-OIC countries and with the rest of the world, and promote strategic alliances through exchange of ideas, information and knowledge.
Tun Musa Hitam signed the MoU in his capacity as the chairman of the World Islamic Economic Forum (WIEF) Foundation and Ahmad Muhammad Ali signed as the president of the Islamic Development Bank Group. Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak witnessed the exchange of documents at the Malaysia-Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group Investment Forum.
According to Tun Musa, both WIEF and IDB have had a long-standing mutual partnership and IDB has been very supportive to the foundation’s activities.
“WIEF recognizes the value of genuine substantive cooperation and wish to pursue it further in several key priority areas and avenues of collaboration. We believe that by intensifying the enduring partnership between WIEF Foundation and IDB, this initiative will help increase the social progress of the Muslim world and Muslim communities in non-Muslim countries,” said Tun Musa.
“WIEF’s partnership with IDB started way back in 2005 and it has been a fruitful, mutually beneficial, strategic long-term partnership, with both sides actively committing to development programs close to a decade. The WIEF Foundation has also supported IDB by being part of their events and initiatives and this has helped solidify the collaboration further. Today’s MoU reinforces the WIEF Foundation-IDB partnership and is a follow-through from the previous agreement. We look forward to taking our collaboration to the next level,” added Tun Musa.
The president of the IDB Group, highlighted that the IDB has a high regard for the WIEF Foundation because of the many platforms and successful Forums the Foundation has organized, with the aim to be a facilitator for business and development initiatives.
“Since the start of IDB’s partnership with the WIEF Foundation, we have immediately forged a strategic partnership which resulted in the successful implementation of joint activities and initiatives to further our common goals and objectives IDB is aware of the need to persistently support and facilitate all aspects of regional cooperation, and we look forward to continue being instrumental in making a difference to both the Muslim and non-Muslim countries. IDB initiated this second MoU as we wanted to further enhance the IDB Group’s relationship with WIEF, which started back in 2007,” said Ali.
Among the areas of cooperation include discussion on development issues aimed at better understanding of global economic challenges and promotion of strategic alliances and partnerships; promotion of economic growth through increased trade and investment of intra-OIC countries and with the rest of the world; promotion of Islamic finance (in OIC member countries as well as the rest of the world); contribution to the poverty reduction efforts in the Muslim World; promotion of the development of the private sector; increasing opportunities for women and youth in the development process.
Khaled M. Al-Aboodi, chief executive officer of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), IDB Group and Ahmad Fuzi Abdul Razak, secretary general of the WIEF Foundation will be the focal contacts for the purpose of the implementation of WIEF-IDB MOU.
Both parties will make the necessary arrangements in accordance with its respective internal regulations, rules and directives.