The Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Islamic Organization for Food Security (IOFS).

IOFS was established under the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) as a specialized institution fostering socio-economic development in its Member Countries through the promotion of food security, sustainable agriculture, and rural development. ICIEC and IOFS share common beneficiaries and strategic objectives for trade and development. Hence, a mutually beneficial partnership between the institutions is inherent to better serving these commonalities and rendering their activities more effectively.

Recognizing ICIEC’s extensive regional and sectoral experience and expertise, IOFS intends to work with ICIEC teams across the Corporation’s regional and country offices to promote the best international practices for food security among common Member Countries. Taking into context both parties’ respective mandates, objectives and procedures, it is anticipated that collaborative efforts will focus on areas of mutual interest with a specific focus on attracting and promoting investment into the agriculture and food sector. Possibilities for further collaborative efforts include the promotion of knowledge-exchange, especially the dissemination of best practices for food safety and halal products in OIC member states, and facilitating South-South or intra-OIC cooperation through the utilization of Reverse Linkage programmes, ICIEC’s trade credit and investment solutions, centres of excellence, extension services, and various capacity-building workshops, in addition to providing technical support and assistance, with specific support for joint research on food security in OIC member states.

Regarding the partnership, ICIEC’s CEO, Mr. Oussama Abdel Rahman Kaissi stated, “ICIEC is delighted to be working closely with IOFS to address the important issue of food security in our Member Countries. Both organizations share similar values and objectives, so there are many opportunities for collaborative efforts that can enhance capacity for our respective activities and that support the achievement of common goals. We look forward to witnessing the immense impacts this partnership will have for OIC citizens.”

As a next step to further the pursuit of common objectives, the parties intend to establish a general framework to facilitate the implementation of the collaboration, which will outline the terms and timelines of key activities.