26.01.2014, Jeddah, KSA - 17 African countries will participate in the 3rd High Level Regional Forum in Dakar, the capital of Senegal, being organized by the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group as part of its 40 years anniversary celebrations in order to make an assessment of the activities of the Group in member/non-member countries.

The High Level Regional Forum in Dakar will be held on 27-28 January 2014. It is expected to discuss the achievements of the IDB Group in the last 40 years, review the challenges faced, and contribute in planning a new 10 year strategy based on the input of member/non-member countries.
The member countries are Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Gabon, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo and Uganda.

“I am most pleased that the journey of IDB Group has reached this important milestone. This Forum is particularly important as it gathers almost one third of the membership of the Islamic Development Bank” said Dr. Ahmad Mohamed Ali, the IDB Group President.
Dr. Ahmad Ali stated that holding the High Level Regional Forum in Senegal provides an opportunity for member/non-member countries in the African continent to provide input in shaping the future of the IDB Group. He then thanked the government of Senegal for its support in hosting the Forum.

Among the dignitaries expected at the High Level Regional Forum are; Mr Amadou Ba Minister of Economy and Finance, Republic of Senegal (IDB Governor), Finance Ministers and other IDB Governors, as well as members of the Board of Executive Directors from the 17 African countries, development experts, media representatives and other stakeholders.

The volume of financing approved by the IDB Group for the 17 countries amounts to US $8,403 million as of October 2013. Already two High Level Regional Fora have taken place in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) for East Asian member countries, and Almaty (Kazakhstan) for European and Central Asian member countries.