Honorable and distinguished guests, Ladies and gentlemen,
I wish to extend my utmost gratitude to the People’s Republic of China for graciously hosting this event, and for the esteemed NDB management for their outstanding leadership. Before I start, I would like to convey a message of appreciation from His Excellency the Minister of State for Financial Affairs, Mohamed bin Hadi Al Hussaini.
Our agenda today brings forward crucial discussions concerning the challenges in global developments, which reiterates the need for the NDB’s vital role in fostering a more inclusive, resilient, and sustainable future for its regions. In doing so, the NDB emphasized its role as an influential entity, driving change for its members and regions by mobilizing resources, financing for impact, and institution building.
The NDB scored impressive achievements this year, including approving the provision of nearly $3 billion in financing, thereby facilitating nearly USD 32 billion for infrastructure and sustainable development projects across four continents since its foundation. Building on these achievements, it will be imperative for the Bank to progress within the framework of the new general strategy, which will transform the bank into a globally leading provider for infrastructure and sustainable development, To this effect:
- The NDB should continue its efforts in advancing the digital economy and infrastructure to enhance connectivity, expand access and foster innovation for its member countries. The UAE fully supports this endeavor, having experienced the positive impact of its digital economy in accelerating the realization of development objectives.
- The NDB should also carry on with supporting its member countries’ transition towards a low-emission development In support of these efforts, the UAE hosts for COP28 which will provide a platform to discuss opportunities to accelerate inclusive climate progress and impactful climate action.
- The NDB should also actively enable member efforts to build domestic capital markets to broaden its investor base, diversify its funding mix and effectively expand its local currency funding
- Finally, the NDB should persist in promoting social inclusion objectives within its development agenda, in line with the “inclusiveness”
I also would like to take this opportunity to highlight the shared vision of the NDB and the UAE in promoting sustainable development and help developing countries achieve their
development goals and aspirations. The UAE actively supports developing countries on the development of their transport, logistics infrastructure and agriculture, among many others. Over the past few years, the UAE has allocated more than $1.5 billion financial assistance for renewable energy projects in over 40 developing countries. Through these efforts, the UAE shares with the NDB the objective to enable a widespread deployment of clean and renewable energy, and we look forward to continuing to do so by working with and through the NDB.
To conclude my remarks, I would like to reiterate the UAE’s dedication to mitigating the effects of climate change, and for our collaboration with the NDB to promote multilateral cooperation to unlock climate finance. During COP28, we will look forward to welcoming our NDB colleagues and fellow governors to the UAE for us to jointly address these issues, where it will be imperative that we prioritize and address them with resolve and collaboration for a sustainable and prosperous future for all. Thank you.