The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has enjoyed a smooth first six months, with projects spanning funding and loans, officials said at the bank's first Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors.
The AIIB, a China-initiated multilateral bank, was founded on Dec. 25, 2015. "Considerable progress has been made on the strategic institutional and operational priorities, with several mid-term performance milestones met, and others well underway," said AIIB president Jin Liqun in his opening address during the meeting, which began Saturday morning in Beijing and will last until Sunday.
CHINA WILL DONATE 50 MILLION USD TO
AIIB Finance Minister Lou Jiwei on Saturday signed a donation agreement with the AIIB president, confirming that China will donate 50 million U.S. dollars to an AIIB special fund. This makes China the first donor to the AIIB special fund, which will support members with project preparation, Jin said in his opening statement.
The AIIB board of directors authorized the the setup of a project preparation special fund on Friday. China vowed in January to contribute 50 million dollars to the project preparation special fund. A detailed report on the implementation of the 2016 Business Plan and Budget was discussed by the directors on Friday, according to Jin.
"The Business Plan targets lending in the 500,000 to 1.2 million dollars range. I am pleased to report that we are poised to meet, and may exceed, this target," said Jin.
The AIIB is accepting new applications until Sept. 30, 2016, and is expected to accept new members at the beginning of 2017, Jin said. "Over the coming years [...] the Bank looks set to take its place as one of the leading multilateral financial institutions for cutting edge infrastructure investments and as a pacesetter for public-private partnerships," said Jin in his report to the board of governors.
Jin expects the AIIB's first International Advisory Panel meeting to convene in the fall. It is said that the AIIB's second annual meeting of the board of governors will be held on Jeju Island in the Republic of Korea. AIIB BOARD OF
DIRECTORS APPROVES FIRST LOANS
On Friday, the AIIB board of directors approved its first four loans, totalling 509 million dollars. The four loans will finance four separate projects, three are co-financing projects with multilateral development bank partners, the AIIB announced.
The projects include a loan of 165 million dollars to bring power to rural Bangladesh; a 216.5 million-dollars loan to improve Indonesian substandard housing, which is expected to be co-financed with the World Bank (WB); a loan of 100 million dollars to finish building a motor way in Pakistan, co-financing with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Britain's Department for International Development (DFID); and a 27.5 million-dollar loan to upgrade a road in Tajikistan, co-financing with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). These projects, which span the energy, urban development and transportation sectors, will help "bridge the region's critical infrastructure financing gap and strengthen regional connectivity," said the AIIB president.
NEW TYPE OF PARTNERSHIP
Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli on Saturday stressed the importance of extensive cooperation surrounding the AIIB and the pursuit of a new type of partnership that is "comprehensive and strong."
"The AIIB belongs to all its members, and aims to promote regional and worldwide common development," Zhang said during his speech at the opening ceremony of annual meeting.
The new type of partnership requires the AIIB to deepen collaboration among all members, strengthen ties with other bilateral and multilateral development banks and policy-based financial institutions, and promote cooperation with the private sector, according to the vice premier. The AIIB allows emerging markets and developing countries to have more say in global economic governance, Zhang said.
It also highlights China's constructive role in the international community as a provider of international public goods. China, which is at a critical stage in its mission to "build a moderately prosperous society in all aspects," welcomes international financial institutions including the WB, the ADB, the AIIB and BRICS New Development Bank to support the country's reform, opening and modernization drive and benefit from China's development, the vice premier said.
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