RIYADH: Mauritanian Minister for Economy and Finance Al-Mukhtar Wald Ajai opened the Arab Gulf Program for Development’s (AGFUND) ninth microfinance bank in Nouakshott, capital of Mauritania last week.
The launch was attended by Yosuf bin Ibrahim Al-Bassam, representative of AGFUND’s President Prince Talal bin Abdulaziz and deputy president, and top Mauritanian officials and businessmen.
"The Ebdaa bank in Nouakchott is one of the initiatives of the AGFUND in different countries to help disadvantaged people to be involved in productive activities and make decent life. Over 1,500 of very low income and disadvantaged community members have benefited from the bank chain of branches in financing their projects in the countries have these branches," he said in his address at the opening ceremony.
The new bank will be the ninth of AGFUND chain Ebdaa banks in the world after Bahrain, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. Three more banks in Morocco, Tunisia, and Philippines are in the pipeline, according to Nasir Bakr Al-Qahtani, executive director of AGFUND.
"The launch of this new bank in Nouakchott comes as part of AGFUND President Prince Talal bin Abdulaziz's sincere and generous efforts to establish specialized banks to achieve financial inclusion for poor and combat poverty in the world," he said.
"AGFUND contributes to fulfill the goals of the communities in which these banks serve to materialize the strategic goals of AGFUND to fight poverty, and improve services in health and education sectors in the developing communities,” he added.
The initiative of creating these banks for the poor was adopted 1997 by Prince Talal when he valued the thoughts and ideas of Professor Muhammad Yunus, founder of Grameen Bank in Bangladesh and leader of microfinance around the globe.
AGFUND, a regional organization based in Riyadh, was established in 1980 upon the initiative of Prince Talal with the support of leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.
The program mainly works in the field of development and growth at the international level through an effective partnership with the United Nations Organization, with regional and national development organizations, with public institutions, with the private sector, as well as with organizations of the civil society.
AGFUND opens new Ebdaa bank for microfinance in Mauritania
AGFUND opens new Ebdaa bank for microfinance in Mauritania
G7 countries to release oil reserves as IEA agrees to largest ever market intervention
- IEA recommends release of 400 million barrels
RIYADH: Germany, Japan and Austria will release part of their oil reserves after the International Energy Agency recommended the release of 400 million barrels of oil from stockpiles, the largest such move in IEA history.
In a statement, IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said the flow of oil, gas and other commodities through the Strait of Hormuz have all but stopped, leading global energy supply to fall by around 20 percent.
Ahead of the confirmation of the move — a larger intervention than the 182.7 million barrels that were released in 2022 by in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — several countries began setting out plans to bring their reserves into play as countries grapple with soaring crude prices amid the US-Israeli war with Iran.
Birol said: “I can now announce that IEA countries have decided to launch the largest ever release of emergency oil stocks in our agency's history.
“IEA countries will be making 400 million barrels of oil available to the market to offset the supply lost through the effective closure of the strait.
“This is a major action aiming to alleviate the immediate impacts of the disruption in markets.”
Germany’s Economy Minister Katherina Reiche confirmed on Wednesday her government plans to limit petrol price increases at filling stations to once a day and to introduce more stringent antitrust regulation of the sector.
She did not give an exact timing for those measures, but added that the US and Japan would be the largest contributors to the release of the oil reserves.
The US has not confirmed it would do so, but its Interior Secretary Doug Burgum told Fox News on Wednesday that “these are the kinds of moments that these reserves are used for.”
The announcements did not stop oil prices rising, with Brent crude up 3.26 percent to $90.66 a barrel at 4:29 p.m Saudi time, and West Texas Intermediate up 3.12 percent to $86.05. Both were some way below the $119 a barrel seen earlier in the week.
“The situation regarding oil supplies is tense, as the Strait of Hormuz is currently virtually impassable,” Germany’s Reiche said.
“We will comply with this request and contribute our share, because Germany stands behind the IEA’s most important principle: mutual solidarity,” Reiche said about the IEA’s request.
According to a statement by Reiche’s ministry, Germany will contribute 2.64 million tonnes of oil. This corresponds to 19.51 million barrels.
Reiche stressed there was no supply shortage in the country, which has a legally mandated reserve of oil and oil products intended to cover 90 days’ demand.
South Korea will release 22.46 million barrels of oil, which represents 5.6 percent of the total IEA ask, the country's industry ministry said.
“The government will consult with the IEA secretariat on details, such as the timing and amount, from the perspective of national interests in accordance with domestic conditions,” the ministry said in a statement.
The ministry said it would continue to coordinate closely with major countries in responding to high oil prices to minimise any domestic impact.
Austrian Economy Minister Wolfgang Hattmannsdorfer said his country was releasing part of the emergency oil reserve and extending the national strategic gas reserve, adding: “One thing is clear: in a crisis, there must be no crisis winners at the expense of commuters and businesses.”
Acting ahead of the IEA move, G7 member Japan announced plans to release 15 days' worth of private-sector oil reserves and one month's worth of state oil reserves.
“Rather than wait for formal IEA approval of a coordinated international reserve release, Japan will act first to ease global energy market supply and demand, releasing reserves as early as the 16th of this month,” Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said in a broadcast statement.
Following a meeting with the IEA on Wednesday, G7 energy ministers said: “In principle, we support the implementation of proactive measures to address the situation, including the use of strategic reserves.”
All IEA member countries are required to keep 90 days’ worth of their nation’s oil use in reserve in case of global disruption.
