WAM Jeddah, July 18th, 2012 (WAM) -- The Islamic Development Bank has approved more than US$ 1,158 million towards development projects financing for IDB member countries and Muslim communities in non-member countries.

This is the largest amount approved by a single IDB Board meeting since the Bank's inception in 1975.

The bank said in a statement that the approvals covered a large number of strategically important development projects comprising US$ 683 million for power generation and power transmission projects in five IDB Member Countries namely Morocco, Tunisia, Iran, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan; US$ 274.8 million for food security and rural development activities in African countries (Cameroon, Chad, Uganda, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Mauritania and Togo); US$ 146.2 million for educational projects in Indonesia, Yemen and Bangladesh; US$ 45 million to Indonesia Exim Bank for the financing of export-oriented small and medium size industries; US$ 7.6 million as additional financing for Durres fishing in Albania (bringing IDB contribution for that project to $ 16.8 million):US$ 400,000 Technical Assistance grant to Djibouti for the "Mother to Child AIDS Transmission Prevention Project " in the health sector.

In line with the Bank's resolve to support development efforts in Muslim communities in non-member countries, the Board approved US$ 1.1 million as grants from the Wakf fund for participation in 4 educational projects for Muslim communities in Ethiopia, India, Papua New Guinea and Germany and one health project in the Philippines.

During its meeting, the Board reviewed a number of important reports including the progress report on the implementation of IDB's program for supporting Youth Employment in Arab Countries for which the Bank had already allocated US$ 250 million and another report on the latest developments on the establishment of the Mega Bank, aiming at liquidities management for Islamic banks, and for which a tripartite Memorandum of understanding was signed earlier between the Government of Qatar, the IDB and the Dallah Al Baraka Group.

WAM/ES/AM