Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 14 February 2021 –  President of Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Dr. Bandar Hajjar, and CEO of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), Mr. Ayman Sejiny, have put their signatures to an Agency Agreement for the implementation of IsDB Group’s R2 COVID Support Package, which will assist IsDB Group Member Countries to restore their economies and recover from the negative impacts resulting from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The Agency Agreement is a manifestation of IsDB President’s vision to improve intra-group collaboration and create room for cooperation with other multilateral development banks (MDBs) and international finance institutions (IFIs). It is also in line with ICD’s new strategic direction which gives utmost importance to synergy and partnership with other IsDB Group Entities and other MDBs.

On this occasion Dr. Hajjar stated: “Today, we set the tone for a new type of intra-group cooperation beyond the IsDB’s R2 program. By agreeing on a clear accountability framework assigning roles and responsibilities between IsDB and ICD, we are on the path of mainstreaming group synergies, which will help us go beyond our limits. As the private sector arm of the Islamic Development Bank Group, ICD will continue to make important contributions to the development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) sector in our Member Countries through dedicated line of finance facilities.”

He further added: “This agreement is the foundation upon which we will work together as one Group to implement IsDB's new business model and further achieve the President’s 5-year Program (P5P) vision.”

Mr. Sejiny commented: “We consider this initiative an important milestone in intra-group collaboration and expansion of our partnership with Member Countries, MDBs, IFIs and a wider community of private sector businesses as the backbone of sustainable growth. The successful implementation of this Agency Agreement will help us introduce many other initiatives on the same platform”.

Under the Agency Agreement, ICD is offering its expertise in implementation of R2 “Restore Program” COVID-19 Support in the area of Line of Finance transactions.

The Corporation will further strengthen its relationship with governments of Member Countries, which will open doors for future cooperation opportunities and policy dialogues for the promotion of Islamic Finance/Banking and support private sector development and job creation. Moreover, where possible, ICD will mobilize additional resources from the market leveraging on its network and syndication skills.