Bali, Indonesia, 14 November 2022– The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the International Labour Organization (ILO) to work on common areas of interest which include youth economic empowerment, workplace gender equality, decent work in crisis response and fragile states, South-South and Triangular Cooperation, and capacity development.

The signing ceremony took place during a courtesy meeting between IsDB President and Group Chairman, H.E. Dr. Muhammad Al Jasser, and ILO Director-General, H.E. Gilbert Houngbo, in Bali, Indonesia on the sidelines of the G20 Summit.

“I trust that the signing of this MOU, which involves a Joint Action Plan, provides a framework that facilitates collaboration and cooperation between the IsDB and ILO,” said Dr. Al Jasser.

Some recent examples of such collaboration have been the design and implementation of the Youth Green Skills Accelerator Challenge Call, with the overarching goal of promoting youth participation and skills for green jobs for a just transition. “To that end, IsDB and ILO invited youth-led organizations, networks, or coalitions based in the IsDB-ILO common member states to propose innovative ideas and solutions to support a just transition towards environmentally sustainable economies and societies for all” Dr. Al Jasser explained. “The objective of the call was to identify, incubate, test, and disseminate innovative/bankable ideas and solutions that equip youth living in the IsDB-ILO common member states with the competencies required for supporting a just transition in their communities”, he continued.

President Al Jasser assured that IsDB Group will expand development partnerships, mobilize additional financing, and scale up its funding with the materialization of the 6th General Capital Increase. Meantime, in addition to development financing, it will also provide value-added knowledge services to member countries.

“Furthermore, this initiative resulted in a follow-up collaboration during the recently concluded COP27 in Sharm El Sheikh, where both institutions collaborated on a joint side event at IsDB Pavilion, presenting the winning proposals while providing the winners with a platform for global visibility”’ Dr. Al Jasser highlighted. He went further to stress the importance of enhancing cooperation. “Besides co-financing, we can blend ILO grant resources with IsDB loans and develop joint financial mechanisms to promote human progress in IsDB member countries”.