The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the OPEC Fund for International Development (the OPEC Fund) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to expand their operational and strategic cooperation to finance global public and private sector projects, promoting sustainable, resilient and high-standard infrastructure development.
“We look forward to further strengthening our collaboration with OPEC Fund and fostering a deeper partnership in exploring common strategic areas of interest,” said AIIB President and Chair of the Board Jin Liqun. “This MOU will allow AIIB and the OPEC Fund to leverage our respective resources to more effectively develop sustainable infrastructure projects. It will also enable AIIB to scale up efforts to unlock private capital for our Members to finance Infrastructure for Tomorrow.”
“We are very pleased to take our cooperation with AIIB to the next level,” said OPEC Fund Director-General Abdulhamid Alkhalifa at the agreement signing. “This MOU signals the ambition and preparedness of our institutions to deliver more by combining our experiences and resources. The size of the global infrastructure gap is so huge that all actors, public and private, must work together. Multilateral development banks play a particularly significant role, because our lending is counter-cyclical and acts as a catalyst to mobilize additional investment.”
To date, AIIB and the OPEC Fund have cofinanced five projects of more than USD1 billion in Bangladesh, Egypt, Nepal, Pakistan and Uzbekistan. The MOU will allow the two institutions to identify cofinancing and co-investment opportunities for projects and programs of common interest in infrastructure development of sectors such as energy, water, transport, digital and social infrastructure in health and education.
About AIIB
The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is a multilateral development bank whose mission is financing the Infrastructure for Tomorrow—infrastructure with sustainability at its core. We began operations in Beijing in January 2016 and have since grown to 105 approved members worldwide. We are capitalized at USD100 billion and Triple-A-rated by the major international credit rating agencies. Collaborating with partners, AIIB meets clients’ needs by unlocking new capital and investing in infrastructure that is green, technology-enabled and promotes regional connectivity.
About the OPEC Fund
The OPEC Fund for International Development (the OPEC Fund) is the only globally mandated development institution that provides financing from member countries to non-member countries exclusively. The organization works in cooperation with developing country partners and the international development community to stimulate economic growth and social progress in low- and middle-income countries around the world. The OPEC Fund was established by the member countries of OPEC in 1976 with a distinct purpose: to drive development, strengthen communities and empower people. Our work is people-centered, focusing on financing projects that meet essential needs, such as food, energy, infrastructure, employment (particularly relating to MSMEs), clean water and sanitation, healthcare and education. To date, the OPEC Fund has committed more than US$22 billion to development projects in over 125 countries with an estimated total project cost of US$187 billion. Our vision is a world where sustainable development is a reality for all.
