World Bulletin / News Desk

Business leaders from Muslim nations will gather in the Tunisian capital on Sunday to review last year's performance by the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), and discuss and approve its development agenda for the year ahead.

Representatives of 57 member states, senior government officials and ministers of finance, economy, planning and international development will attend the 43rd annual meeting of the bank in Tunis from April 1-5.

Several events have been organized on the sidelines of the conference from April 1-3 which deal with a wide range of issues, such as women empowerment, youth, preventing blindness, sustainable development, fintech, efficient water usage, global partnerships and Islamic bonds.

The governing board of the bank, which has been rated AAA by the three major credit rating agencies of the world for the past 14 years, will meet on April 4-5.

Bandar Hajjar, group president for the bank, said: “We are committed to the development needs of our member countries.

"In the last one year, we have introduced several initiatives that would help in building capacity of our member countries, particularly by leveraging on the opportunities offered by science and technology."

He added that the bank will decentralize its operations in order to be closer to its clients.

"No institution can solve development challenges alone. That is why the annual meeting in Tunisia is focusing on partnerships for sustainable development,” Hajjar said.