President Shavkat Mirziyoyev today hosted the President of the Islamic Development Bank Bandar Al Hajjar, who is leading a delegation of Arab Coordination Group, the presidential press service reported.
Currently, the cooperation portfolio between Uzbekistan and IDB includes such projects of road modernization, transport, energy and municipal infrastructure, construction of rural housing, water supply networks, health and education and lending to SMEs worth total of US$ 1.9 billion.
The parties reportedly discussed the ways to expand bilateral cooperation, focusing on the implementation of programs and projects aimed at improving the quality of life of the rural population, upgrading the infrastructure, equipping medical and educational institutions in provinces and lending to businesses, including through public-private partnership.
The potential and desire to expand is evidenced by the Partnership Strategy for 2018-2021 between IDB and Uzbekistan totalling US$ 1.3 billion dollars signed on the eve.
Shavkat Mirziyoyev expressed his gratitude to the chief of the IDB for supporting the Imam Bukhari International Research Center in Samarkand, which was set up with the aim to study the heritage of ancestors who contributed to the development of world civilization.
In his turn, Bandar Hajjar valued Uzbekistan as IDB's key partner in the region and stressed that the bank's readiness to expand support for reform efforts in the country and deepen mutually beneficial cooperation.
