Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am particularly pleased that our discussions on trade promotion and trade financing are concluding with the risk sharing agreement we are signing today.
The processes of appraisal, due diligence, decision and documentation that have preceded this agreement may have been somewhat long but they have been of great benefit to us.
We have learned a great deal from your most competent officials and we would like to thank the many who have contributed to the conclusion of this agreement, be they in Singapore or London.
We thank them for their valuable inputs and we look forward to further interfacing notably at the “OFID Day”, which SCB has kindly offered to organise for our officials.
I am confident that the knowledge, of each other, that we have built and continue building will help us create the base for a solid and lasting partnership between the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) and Standard Chartered Bank in the matter of trade and beyond.
This Risk Sharing Agreement is a milestone in the program of deployment of our Trade Finance Facility. The agreement will allow us to strengthen our activities in some 18 countries and develop a relationship with over 80 banks.
It gives me great pleasure to sign such an agreement with an institution whose achievements and experience date back more than 150 years and which is undoubtedly a leading and trusted player in local and international financial markets. We are aware that trade finance is a core business of the SCB Group and we are pleased that its geographical footprint, being Asia, Middle East and Africa, coincides well with OFID’s mandate.
Indeed, for us, this risk sharing agreement should be one of the first steps in the establishment of a strategic relationship between OFID and the SCB Group. Such a relationship will not focus solely on trade finance but should encompass all development activities in our Partner Countries, and I am personally keen to exchange views with the Management of the SCB group on ways and means of building a strategic alliance within the framework of our respective mandates.
While we appreciate that the SCB has built its business on establishing and maintaining long term relationships with clients based on excellent service and close attention to their needs, I would like to highlight the features of OFID that would enhance the synergy of this cooperation
In its 33 years experience of operating as a multilateral development finance institution, OFID programmes are always determined by the partner countries priorities. They also reflect our concern for being permanently relevant to their needs and to continuously improve the service we provide. As of today OFID has conducted over 1,200 substantial development operations in 121 countries with a total volume of over US$ 11 billion commitments.
In the concessional lending, OFID assistance is primarily directed towards low and lower middle income countries. Countries “graduating” from OFID’s concessional programs remain eligible for what we call the “Blend Facility” which offers lending terms that are less concessional but still below commercial rates.
OFID’s outright grants are focused on the social and humanitarian development needs of the poorest segments of the population in OFID beneficiary countries.
Besides funding Public Sector projects, OFID offers an opportunity to its Partner Countries to develop their Private Sector through OFID’s Private Sector Facility. Direct financing is provided to entities at commercial terms for their investments in productive industries, economic infrastructure, telecommunication and other viable projects, which help to promote economic development and improve living standards. The facility also supports small and medium sized companies through lines of credits to regional and local financial intermediaries and characteristically the facility offers strong support to micro credit providers.
Our Trade Finance Facility is a recent innovation. By engaging in trade financing, OFID now provides an additional finance mechanism to assist partner countries with their overall growth and economic development. The timing is good as we anticipate a growing demand for trade finance as the momentum of world economic recovery gathers speed.
In concluding, I would like to once again thank you, Ms. Fawcett, and your colleagues for the excellent cooperation on this transaction. I am also grateful to SCB for preparing today’s signing ceremony. I am most appreciative for these arrangements and for the attention you have given me and my delegation.