JEDDAH, 1 February 2007 — The 15-member states in the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) have contributed over $1.328 billion to the Poverty Alleviation Fund established under the Islamic Development Bank (IDB). Total contributions, so far, represent only 13 percent of the target for the fund.
Saudi Arabia was the first country to announce its contribution of $1 billion at the IDB’s board of governors’ meeting in Kuwait in May 2006. Another major contributor is Kuwait with $300 million. Other countries have made combined contributions of over $28 million.
The IDB board of executives had decided to establish the fund as a Waqf, with an initial capital of $10 billion payable over a period of 10 years, and be financed only from the return on investment in its core resources.
Arab News has learned that the IDB is planning to hold a finance ministers’ meeting in February in Jeddah as part of its efforts to secure more contributions to the fund.
Participating in this meeting will be the IDB president, governors of the bank and the secretary general of OIC. In preparation for this meeting, IDB will hold a consultative meeting with experts and scholars on Feb. 14 here for their input on strategy and objectives in how the fund will be operated.
The third extraordinary OIC summit held in Makkah in December 2005 decided to establish a special fund within the IDB, the financial arm of the OIC, in order to help address and alleviate poverty and provide job opportunities in OIC member states.
The fund will finance projects in education, health and infrastructure in all OIC member states and in the least-developed countries.
The IDB is working on the necessary documentations including policy, operational, technical, management and administrative aspects of the fund for its establishment and operation “hopefully in a year’s time,” Ambassador Nabika Diallo, advisor to OIC Secretary General, said.
These documents are expected to be finalized by March this year. The IDB Board of Executives will present them in May in Dakar, Senegal during the 32nd meeting of the IDB board of governors.