Marrakech, 11^th October 2023 – On the sidelines of the 2023 World Bank-IMF Annual Meetings, Islamic Development Bank President H.E. Dr. Muhammad Al Jasser and H.E. Mr. Wale Edun, Nigeria's Minister of Finance held fruitful discussions on the ongoing development initiatives in Nigeria.

The leaders delved into various issues of mutual interest, focusing on key sectors such as infrastructure, health, education, and agriculture, which have been pivotal in the IsDB’s involvement in Nigeria since its first operation in February 2008.

At the meeting, H.E. Dr. Al Jasser expressed the IsDB's commitment to collaborating with Nigeria in key priority areas, which include accelerating economic growth, combating poverty, and enhancing resilience amidst global challenges.

The IsDB is in the process of finalizing a medium-term country engagement framework (CEF) for 2023-2025, which will expedite the delivery of resilient development projects in Nigeria. The discussions also highlighted enhancing cooperation for future collaboration in the field of Islamic financial products, poverty alleviation, and education. Special emphasis was placed on reintegrating out-of-school children into the education system through collaboration with the Bank’s leading global partners.

The leaders also addressed potential challenges and strategies to enhance the socio-economic development and prosperity of Nigeria.

The discussions were enriched with the exploration of future IsDB Group programs for the country, ensuring that the initiatives align with development priorities of Nigeria as well as IsDB’s Strategic initiatives as outlined in the Bank’s  Realigned Strategy (2023-2025).