Jeddah, KSA

The Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC), the export credit and investment insurance agency of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group, has signed yesterday a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with  Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI), the Export Credit Agency (ECA) of Japan, whereby the two entities expressed their willingness to strengthen and further expand their existing cooperation.

The MoU was signed virtually by Mr Oussama KAISSI, Chief Executive Officer of ICIEC, and Mr Atsuo Kuroda, Chairman and CEO of NEXI.  

ICIEC and NEXI are already cooperating in a reinsurance framework to cover projects in ICIEC member countries. Today’s agreement follows the signing of an MoU on 27^th August 2019 for Accelerating Trade and Investments Targeting Africa by Japanese Companies between the two parties.

Under the new MoU, ICIEC and NEXI plan to strengthen and expand the strategic partnership in greenfield projects being significant to Japan and the ICIEC member countries, conforming to ICIEC’s mandate and NEXI’s strategy.

The two parties are particularly interested in jointly supporting greenfield projects in the Middle East, Central Asia and African countries.

This new cooperation may include the provision of Co-Insurance and Reinsurance. The aim is also to leverage ICIEC’s extensive local knowledge and networking in member countries in Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and the MENA region. In this respect and of greenfield projects, ICIEC may assist NEXI in its due diligence process for such projects, including on-site due diligence.

“This new MoU,” says Mr Oussama KAISSI, CEO of ICIEC, “further consolidates our long-standing and growing partnership with NEXI in supporting bankable projects and inward Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into our member countries in the MENA and SSA regions. Through our respective suites of de-risking solutions, we hope to boost the involvement of public-private partnerships in much-needed development and infrastructure projects in the mutually targeted countries in the Middle East, Central Asia and African countries”.

“We plan to cooperate in developing the business environment to facilitate financing proposals from Japanese companies through the active underwriting of projects and the provision of reinsurance facilities. ICIEC has a long history of operations in the organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) member countries. Japanese companies wish to expand their presence in the Middle East, Central Asia and African countries. This occasion represents a welcome opportunity to capitalize on our mutual strengths to carry out our core mandates of helping countries and the lives and livelihoods of their citizens.”

Mr Atsuo Kuroda, Chairman and CEO of NEXI, commented at the virtual signing of the MoU: “Since signing the previous MOU in August 2019, ICIEC and NEXI have been closely working together to explore potential areas of cooperation. In that sense, the reinsurance framework we have established is the first major accomplishment that will solidify the two institutions’ further cooperation. Acknowledging that there are many possible forms of cooperation other than reinsurance, the purpose of the new MOU is not only to further strengthen the relationship between ICIEC and NEXI but to take our cooperation to a whole new level, which the next goal is to collaborate in greenfield projects that are significant for ICIEC member countries and Japan. It is expected of such greenfield projects to bring about many positive impacts, such as assisting countries to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic as well as open doors for significant economic development.”