Ankara, Turkiye, 5 September 2024 – The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group has organized a one-day seminar to shed light on the Group’s Country Engagement Framework (CEF) outlining its 3-year strategy for socio-economic development cooperation with the Republic of Turkiye in line with the country’s national development plans.

The CEF had been officially launched on 29^th April on the sidelines of IsDB Group’s 2024 Annual Meetings in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, by Turkiye’s Minister of Treasury and Finance and IsDB Governor, H.E. Dr. Mehmet Şimşek, and IsDB President, H.E. Dr. Muhammad Al Jasser.

The CEF Seminar was held on 5^th September 2024 by IsDB Group Regional Hub in Turkiye (RHT) at JW Marriot Hotel, Ankara, and was attended by H.E. Osman Çelik, Deputy Minister of Treasury and Finance of the Republic of Türkiye; H.E. Kerem Dönmez, Director General at Ministry of Treasury and Finance and IsDB Alternate Governor for Turkiye; Dr. Issa Faye, Director General for Global Practice and Partnerships, IsDB; and Dr. Walid Abdelwahab, Director, IsDB Group Regional Hub Turkiye; as well as more than 80 senior experts and professionals from various ministries and organizations in the host country. 

The keynote speaker at the seminar was H.E. Osman Çelik, Deputy Minister of Treasury and Finance of the Republic of Türkiye who appreciated the preparation of the IsDB-Turkiye Country Engagement Framework (CEF) as he described IsDB a long-standing development partner of Turkiye. He underscored the importance of the IsDB Group Country Engagement Framework (CEF), stating that the document aims to support Turkiye in attaining resilient, inclusive, and sustainable development by providing finance to areas that will help achieve development goals.

The CEF covers various sectors ranging from the reconstruction of schools and city hospitals in the earthquake areas to the modernization of railways, motorways, and transmission grids for renewable energy integration.

In his opening remarks, Dr. Issa Faye, IsDB Director General for Global Practice and Partnerships described the IsDB Group CEF for Turkiye as a testament to the Bank’s unwavering commitment to supporting Turkiye in its development journey. He added that the IsDB stands ready to engage with the public and private sectors to foster and promote green sustainable infrastructure and inclusive human capital development.

Welcoming the participants, Dr. Walid Abdelwahab, IsDB Group RHT Director, explained that the seminar aimed to engage key stakeholders—including government officials, representatives from international financial institutions, and academic institutions—to discuss Türkiye's current and emerging development challenges and the government's initiatives to tackle them.

The event also included two-panel discussions: one on “Navigating Economic Challenges and Seizing Opportunities in Türkiye” and one on “Expansion of Cooperation and Financing for Development Among IFIs”. Panelists included senior officials from the Government, MDBs, and Academia.

Turkiye is a founding member and one of the major shareholders of the Islamic Development Bank. In the past 50 years since its establishment, IsDB Group has been a trusted development partner of Turkiye establishing a multidimensional partnership mainly focusing on health, urban and inter-city transportation, renewable energy, and energy efficiency, as well as education and industries.

About the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group: 

Rated AAA by the world's major rating agencies, the Islamic Development Bank is the pioneering multilateral development bank (MDB) of the Global South that has been working for 50 years to improve the lives of the people and communities it serves by delivering impact at scale. The Bank brings together 57 Member Countries across four continents, touching the lives of nearly 1 in 5 of the world population. It is committed to addressing development challenges and promoting collaboration to help achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by equipping people to drive their own green economic and sustainable social progress, putting planet-friendly infrastructure in place, and enabling them to fulfill their potential. Headquartered in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, IsDB has regional hubs and centers of excellence in 11 Member Countries.  Over the years, the Bank has evolved from a single entity into a group comprising: the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), the Islamic Development Bank Institute (IsDBI) tasked with research and training; the Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC); the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD); the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC); and the Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development tasked with alleviating poverty in IsDB Member Countries and beyond.

For more information, please visit: (www.isdb.org) or reach out to:

M.A. DinMohammadi

Regional Communications Officer,

IsDB Group Regional Hub Turkiye

Email: mdinmohammadi@isdb.org