Ulaanbaatar, 23 May – The Association of Development Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific (ADFIAP) is hosting its 36th Annual Meeting in Ulaanbatar, Mongolia from 22-24 May 2013. The 3-days meeting themed “DFI’s and Chamber of Commerce and Industry: Advancing Sustainable Businesses” is hosted by the Mongolian National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MNCCI).
The annual meeting officiated by the Prime Minister of Mongolia, His Excellency Norovyn Altankhuyag is chaired by ADFIAP’s chairman Datuk Wan Azhar Wan Ahmad who is also the Managing Director of Credit Guarantee Corporation Malaysia Berhad(CGC).
In his opening remarks, Datuk Wan Azhar said that the synergistic public-private sector partnership between the development finance institutions (DFIs) and business organizations should be strengthened further as both play a critical role in achieving a sustainable future.
“When we talk about sustainable future, we really need to understand what sustainable development is all about. It embraces the triple line of sustainability, that is the economic, environmental and social as well as anticipates and addresses major trends such as climate change, natural resource depletion, food scarcity and urban expansion,” said Datuk Wan Azhar.
“Sustainability is about enhancing the quality of growth to help especially developing countries to move and remain on a development path that reduces poverty and meets the needs of people today without reducing the ability of future generations to meet their goals,” added Datuk Wan Azhar.
Datuk Wan Azhar said that in the present day, public-private partnership are increasingly seen by governments, aid organizations and the international community as the most excellent way to leverage resources to meet critical infrastructure and security needs. This will also allow governments to benefit from private sector initiatives, entrepreneurship and financing to increase capacity and efficiency.
He also reiterated that the DFIs, with its mandate of providing access to financial and support services for the underserved, priority and strategic sectors of the economy, and the Chambers of Commerce and Industry with its role as the focal point and voice of private sector, can jointly undertake economic, social and environmental development initiatives to help expand and sustain national growth and prosperity.
“It is in this context that we have chosen ‘DFIs & Chambers of Commerce & Industry: Advancing Sustainable Businesses’ as the theme for this edition of our annual meeting,î said Datuk Wan Azhar. ‘This theme is in recognition of the synergistic public-private partnership of business organizations and the development finance institutions under ADFIAP.”
He further added that this is the first time that the DFIs and the Chambers of Commerce and Industry in the ADFIAP community are joining together to enhance cooperation and explore new opportunities for the advancement of business sustainability.
Institutions like ADFIAP that are advocates of sustainable development, believe that meeting the needs of the future depends on how well they balance the social, economic and environmental objectives or needs when making decisions.
‘ADFIAP member institutions use development finance as an instrument in pursuing their sustainable development mandates by taking the dimensions or aspects of sustainability plus good governance as the four pillars of ADFIAP’s sustainable mission,î added Datuk Wan Azhar. The three days meeting features sessions, debates and discussions on sustainable businesses, best practices on SME promotion and development, microfinance and financial inclusion, innovative and sustainable business practices, green investments in infrastructure and energy, governance and CSR, and the role of chamber of commerce and industries in economic and business development as well as global economic trend and challenges.
Other programmes include the 77th Board of Directors Meeting, the 20th Ordinary Meeting of the General Assembly, the ADFIAP Awards 2013, the Conference Proper, the Delegates-meet-Delegates session as well as Shared Interest Group Seminars.
At the welcome reception and awards night held last evening, Datuk Wan Azhar was bestowed the coveted ‘Silk Road Award’ in recognition of his contribution towards the banking community for SME development. The award was presented on behalf of the Mongolian National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MNCCI) by Mr. S. Demberel, the chairman and CEO of MNCCI and a member of Parliament of Mongolia.
About 100 ADFIAP’s delegates comprising of chief executives and senior management of DFIs, officials of supervisory authorities and government agencies, central banks, Ministries of Finance, commercial banks and multinational corporations from all over Asia and the Pacific nation and from the Chambers of Commerce and Industry are attending the 36th Annual Meeting.
Besides CGC, other Malaysian DFIs participating in this meeting are Agro Bank, BSN, Perbadanan Nasional Bhd (PNS), SME Bank and TEKUN Nasional.
About ADFIAP
The ADFIAP (Associations of Development Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific) was established in 1976 by the development financing institutions (DFIs) in the Asian and Pacific region under the auspices of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). ADFIAP currently has 131 member-institutions in 45 countries and territories. Malaysia has 10 institutions who are members of ADFIAP.
ADFIAP is also a founding member and secretariat of the 320-member, 106-country, World Federation of Development Financing Institutions (WFDFI) composed of similar regional associations in Africa, Latin America and the Middle East. ADFIAP is an NGO in consultative status with the United Nation’s Economic and Social council (UN ECOSOC) with its headquarters in Manila, Philippines.