Surinam: presidente del Banco Central firma acuerdos con el titular del Banco Islámico de Desarrollo
Suriname central bank governor visits Saudi Arabia to expand ties with Islamic Bank
Suriname’s Central Bank Governor Gillmore Hoefdraad and his accompanying delegation met with the chairman of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group, Dr Ahmad Mohamed Ali, on March 24 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, according to a press release from the bank’s headquarters.
Hoefdraad conveyed a message of appreciation on behalf of the president of Suriname, Desi Bouterse to the IsDB chairman, praising the existing relations between his country and the IsDB and underlining Suriname’s desire to promote further cooperation.
According to Hoefdraad, the responses from the various entities of the IsDB Group have been very favourable especially in the health and education sectors of Suriname to which the bank has contributed US $75 million.
The meeting focused on discussing the progress made in the implementation of the partnership strategy between the government of Suriname and the IsDB Group, signed last November, under which the IsDB Group is focusing on supporting the priority sectors set by Suriname, according to the press release.
Hoefdraad stated that his country currently benefits from IsDB’s “reverse linkage” program for exchange of expertise amongst member countries, based on which Suriname is currently cooperating with Malaysia to take advantage of Kuala Lumpur’s expertise in the development of agriculture, particularly in Suriname’s rice industry.
The IDB chairman expressed pleasure at the tangible progress made by Suriname, as well as the cooperation between Suriname and Malaysia. Dr Ali stated that the visit by Hoefdraad will help uplift the existing relations between Suriname and the IDB Group.
Suriname joined the IDB in 1997. Since then, the IsDB has approved US$108 million for financing various development projects in the country with a focus on the health and transport sectors. IDB comprises 56 member countries, of which Suriname is the only one from the South American continent.