ICIEC further strengthens its clout with the recent membership of the Union of the Comoros, making the archipelago of island’s nation, in the Indian Ocean located at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel off the eastern coast of Africa its 44^th member country.

With a young and rapidly increasing population, the Comoros is the world’s largest producer of ylang-ylang flower from which a distinctive oil for expensive perfumes is extracted. Also it is a large producer of vanilla and cloves. Agriculture contributes 40% to GDP, employs 80% of the labor force, and provides most of the exports.

Commenting on Comoros’ recent decision, Mr. Oussama A. Kaissi, the Chief Executive Officer of ICIEC, said “the Union of Comoros’s membership opens the door for its private and public sectors to benefit from risk mitigation services offered by ICIEC. Similarly, it allows exporters, banks and investors from other member countries, to cover risks related to their operations in Comoros. ICIEC seizes this opportunity to invite exporters, banks and investors in all member countries, including those in Comoros to benefit from the services it offers for the management of commercial and political risks”.

ICIEC, a member of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group, is a pioneer in the field of Shariah-compliant credit and political risk insurance and reinsurance. Its shareholders are the “AAA” rated IDB and 44 member countries, which are members of the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC). Since 2008, ICIEC has been assigned a standalone rating of Aa3 by Moody’s with stable outlook.

ICIEC was established with the objective to facilitate and increase trade and investment between member countries and the world through Shariah-compliant risk mitigation tools and reinsurance instruments. It also seeks to promote foreign direct investments into these countries.

Several other member countries from Organization Islamic Cooperation (OIC) are in the process of completing the membership requirements.