According to the Public Relations Department of the Organization for Investment, Economic & Technical Assistance of Iran (OIETAI), Dr. Seyyed Shams al-Din Hosseini the Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance of Islamic Republic of Iran said in his meeting with Mr. Ahmad Mohammad Ali the President of the Islamic Development Bank: “Iran is one of the few countries that make use of Islamic banking model and, as such, backs the Islamic Development Bank in all its activities”.

Mr. Hosseini added: “it is expected that with the support of Iran and other member countries, the Islamic Development Bank will become the highest ranking bank in the world not only in terms of ranking but also volume”.

He went on to say: “I have always reiterated the importance of Islamic banking as a model and praised the practices of the Islamic Development Bank in various conferences on the global financial crisis held in either Iran or other parts of the world”.

The Minister of Economy called for the participation and investment the Islamic Development Bank in the Sukuk bonds issued by I.R. Iran and added: “these papers are being released based on the Islamic model and the buyers are actually investors in a cause that is blue-chip and usury-free”.

Iran-Turkmenistan-Kazakhstan railway to be Financed by the Islamic Development Bank

The Minister of Economy expressed his delight over Islamic Development Bank’s financing of the Iran-Turkmenistan-Kazakhstan railway project and announced: “this railway is the harbinger of friendship amongst Muslim countries and the Islamic Development Bank has played a major role in it. Every activity that the Islamic Development Bank undertakes for Muslim countries is like a sapling planted in the farming land of Islam and thus all the Muslims will ultimately benefit from it”.

Dr. Hosseini urged the Islamic Development Bank to offer proper insurance coverage and promote trade between Muslim countries and provide banking finances for the private sector.

Mr. Ahmad Mohammad Ali the President of the Islamic Development Bank said in the meeting: “words fail me to describe how close I feel towards the government of Iran and especially its Minister of Economic Affairs and Finances. I am much obliged for their unsparing efforts and their incontrovertible support to the Islamic Development Bank”.

He went on to say: “despite the global financial crisis, the Islamic Development Bank has been granted significant and glowing grades by the world’s top ranking institutes. At the same time the bank has not forgotten poor countries and has been striving to develop it assistances to these countries”.

Mr. Mohammad Ali termed Iran’s role in establishing relationship between Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan positive and said: “when the said railway becomes operational, Iran will be connected to different countries in Central Asia which themselves will be linked to Persian Gulf, Caspian Sea and, all in all, to the Muslim Ummah”.

Welcoming the idea of Iran’s Sukuk bonds The President of the Islamic Development Bank said: “ I am sure these papers are in accordance with the Islamic Sharia and we are going to look into them. The Islamic Development Bank  surely backs projects in which private and state sectors are involved”.

It needs to be mentioned that Islamic Republic of Iran is one of the largest shareholders of Islamic Development Bank and so far it has utilized the financial facilities of this bank for the projects of the governmental and private sectors.