H.E. Dr. Bandar M. Hajjar, President of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group, attended the virtual meeting of the Management Council of the Astana International Financial Center, which was chaired by H.E. Mr. Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and attended by senior officials of the Government of Kazakhstan. 

The foreign members of the Management Council (MC) of the AIFC, including the IsDB Group President, EBRD, JP Morgan Chase International Citi Bank Group, Sberbank of Russia, Goldman Sachs International, and renown experts and academicians have also participated in this virtual meeting. The meeting consisted of a review of the 2019 AIFC Annual Report as well as a presentation and discussion of the new AIFC Development Strategy 2021-2025. 

The AIFC Management Council chair, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, stressed the importance of the economic recovery of Kazakhstan, and said that the AIFC should take an active part in the implementation of the national economic agenda in the framework of the strategic priorities of the country. According to the President, the investors may have little interest in one country alone but would not be able to ignore the entire region of the Eurasian Union and Central Asia, which is interconnected by trade and industrial ties. 

The President has directed the Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market, to develop a new bold regulatory framework jointly with AIFC aimed at integrating and developing the domestic securities market. He highlighted that the AIFC, with its unique capabilities, can act as a universal platform linking the countries of the region and attract the global investors to eventually restore the receding economy. This is not part of the AIFC’s original mandate, but it is the time now to adopt to the changes. Portfolio investments also need to be strengthened and the domestic securities market is still underdeveloped. 

During the meeting, the experts also shared with the AIFC MCM, their vision of the economic situation in the region and the world, supported the current initiatives of the Government and also supported the idea for expanding the role of the AIFC both nationally and regionally. 

In his statement the IsDB Group President has stressed that the IsDB Group is a strategic partner of the Republic of Kazakhstan and will continue to develop mutually beneficial relations and work on increasing the portfolio of projects. The IsDB Group President also underscored the importance of the Post-COVID economic recovery in the IsDB Member Countries. 

As Chair of the Heads of MDBs, the IsDB Group President has recently coordinated a Virtual Meeting of 11 MDBs and the IMF. The meeting culminated in the MDBs’ full commitment to intensify their efforts towards exploring new means to provide low-cost financing to their Member Countries, thereby boosting their collective response to the COVID-19 crisis. All MDBs are also working together to play a collective role in supporting development programs in member countries in post-COVID19 recovery phase. 

As per outcome, MCM AIFC has adopted the AIFC Annual Report and the AIFC Development Strategy 2021-2025.