Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 12 May 2023 - The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group and the Government of Niger launched the IsDB Group Revamped Member Country Partnership Strategy (MCPS) for Niger on 12 May 2023, in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The launching ceremony took place on the sidelines of the IsDB Group Board of Governors’ Annual Meeting in Jeddah on Friday 12 May 2023, under the auspices of IsDB President and Group Chairman, H.E. Dr. Muhammad Al Jasser, in the presence of a delegation from Niger led by H.E. Dr. Rabiou Abdou, the IsDB Governor for Niger.
In his address, H.E. President Al Jasser expressed satisfaction over the level of cooperation between Niger and the IsDB Group appreciating the Government of Niger for the solid support provided to the Bank.
While signing the MoU, H.E. Dr. Rabiou Abdou, IsDB Governor for Niger commended IsDB Group’s important contributions in support of development efforts in his country and assured that the Government of Niger will take necessary actions to speed up the implementation of the MCPS and the IsDB portfolio in the country.
The IsDB MCPS for Niger is a four-year strategy document (2023-2026) that focuses on two main pillars in addition to a cross-cutting area:
Pillar 1: Building Inclusive Human Capital - The strategic objectives of the pillar are to enhance human capital development for all Nigeriens in all regions of the country. The pillar aims to address human capital development for women who lag far behind and tackle regional inequalities by also focusing on disadvantaged regions. More specifically the pillar will place a special emphasis on education because it is one of the fundamental challenges the country is facing, and it is one of the key agendas of H.E., The President of Niger. Pillar 1 cascades to three focus areas: (1) enhancing school infrastructure, (2) improving teachers’ quality, (3), widening education access for girls.
Pillar 2: Supporting Economic Transformation - The objective of the pillar is to promote inclusive economic growth by structurally developing the industrial and sectoral levers of the economy. The key focus areas of this pillar are strengthening food security by enhancing agricultural value chains, promoting trade and private sector participation, improving rural roads, and boosting energy access and efficient water systems.
Cross-Cutting Area - This part of the strategy will focus on enhancing capacities to implement the interventions identified in the MCPS. Given the country context, the capacity development focus area will aim to build up the fiduciary capabilities of Niger in project financial management, procurement, and disbursement.
More specifically, the capacity development will consist of (i) Capacity Building in Fiduciary, Piloting Interventions, and Reverse Linkage (ii) Promoting Regional Equality, (iii) Promoting and Widening Access to Islamic Finance, (iv) Supporting Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation, (v) Improving Economic Empowerment of Women and Youth.
Since joining IsDB in 1978, the IsDB Group has approved a total of US$ 981 million for Niger in different sectors including Transport, Water & Sanitation, Agriculture, Education, Finance, and Health. As of 12 May 2023, the IsDB active portfolio comprises 23 active operations for a total amount of US$555 million.