Finance Minister Yasser Barnea held talks with the President of the Islamic Development Bank Group, Mohammed Al-Jasser, and senior officials at the bank, regarding a proposal to settle existing financial obligations towards the bank, and reached agreement on acceptable settlement elements, while both emphasized the necessity of accelerating the processing of the file, in order to serve the resumption of the bank's financing of infrastructure projects in Syria.
The Ministry of Finance clarified via its Telegram channel today, Tuesday, that the two sides discussed during the meeting, which was held on the sidelines of the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Bangkok, and which was attended by Youssef Al-Faris from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, the identification of common priority sectors, and the establishment of a framework for addressing and completing previous projects, alongside discussing new projects in the sectors of sanitation, transport, health, and energy.
The meeting addressed support for trade financing, including petroleum derivatives, and the need to support the private sector through the Islamic Corporation for the Financing of International Trade, as well as continuing cooperation in preparing a poverty alleviation strategy and improving livelihoods in Syria, and contributing to the development of Islamic financial services and sukuk markets.
The Finance Minister expressed the Syrian government's appreciation for the continuous support provided by the Islamic Development Bank, particularly in the fields of technical support, consultations, and project follow-up, and its understanding of reconstruction needs and priorities, emphasizing the importance of continuing this cooperation.
At the end of the meeting, Minister Barnea welcomed the Bank President's visit to Syria, to which the President expressed his readiness to visit before the end of the current year, and to prepare for the signing of agreements and projects that contribute to achieving developmental impact.
Minister Barnea had previously emphasized, during the G24 ministerial meeting in which the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund and the Managing Director of the World Bank Group participated, that unfavorable geopolitical challenges and developments are imposing increasing pressures on developing countries, especially those emerging from conflicts such as Syria.
Source: Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA)
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