On Tuesday April 12, 2022, the G20 held virtually an Informal G20 Finance and Central Bank Deputies (FCBD) meeting to prepare for the upcoming 2nd G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) meeting that will be held on April 20, 2022, on the sidelines of the IMF-WB spring meetings in Washington DC. The meeting is being held against the backdrop of a tense geopolitical context within the G20 resulting from the war in eastern Europe and the consequent political and economic tensions between Russia and some other G20 member countries.

IsDBG was represented in the meeting by a high-level delegation led by Dr. Rami Ahmed - IsDBG’s G20 Sherpa, special advisor to H.E. IsDB President, and IsDB’s special envoy on SDGs – and including in its membership Br. Salah Jelassi, the manager of IsDBG’s regional hub in Indonesia – the G20 host country for 2022.

During the meeting, Dr. Rami Ahmed made a statement where he commended the tenacity and wisdom of Indonesia in leading the G20 during this difficult time, emphasizing IsDBG’s commitment to supporting the Indonesian G20 presidency’s agenda and supporting Indonesia’s efforts toward a successful conclusion of the G20 in 2022. He also stressed the dire need for a coordinated global action led by the G20 to overcome the ongoing economic and financial crisis and avoid fragmentation of the global multilateral system. Moreover, Dr. Rami pointed out that IsDBG monitors with concern the developments of the war and is continuously reassessing its impacts on the humanitarian situation and development contexts in IsDB member countries, particularly in fragile ones and conflict-affected states, such as Yemen, Somalia, and Syria, as well as the situation of alimentary security in a number of our MENA member countries, particularly those who rely on Russian and Ukrainian wheat, such as Egypt, Tunisia, and Algeria. Finally, Dr. Rami expressed IsDBG’s support for the proposed FMCBG agenda and interest in all its items, particularly those related to Global Health and sustainable finance issues and expressed IsDBG’s hope that the FMCBG agenda will cater for developing and least developed countries, stressing the important role of MDBs in this regard.