His Excellency Sadat Mansoor Naderi, the Afghan Minister of Urban Development Affairs, visited the headquarters of Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) and met with His Excellency Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi, Director General of ADFD and several of the Fund’s officials to further nurture the partnership between ADFD and Afghanistan .
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His Excellency Abdul Farid Zikria, Ambassador of Afghanistan to the UAE was also present at the meeting that explored the strengthening of joint cooperation and bilateral ties between the two countries. The two sides examined ways in which ADFD could continue to support Afghanistan in achieving sustainable economic and social development through leveraging the emerging opportunities in that country.
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Welcoming the Afghan delegates, His Excellency Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi, said, “The visit of the Afghan Minister of Urban Development Affairs to our headquarters comes within the framework of coordinated efforts between the Afghan government and Abu Dhabi Fund for Development to enhance socio-economic development in Afghanistan.”
He added: “Abu Dhabi Fund for Development and the Government of Afghanistan have been engaged in long-standing strategic partnerships since 1977. The Fund has played a catalytic role to underpin the Afghan government in implementing its development goals to achieve economic stability and nation-wide prosperity.”
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He further clarified that the Minister’s visit and subsequent meetings between ADFD and the Afghan government that are in the pipeline, will drive closer synergies between them and open up new opportunities for the Fund to invest in towards translating a positive impact on the population of Afghanistan. He added that these efforts were in line with ADFD’s vision to alleviate the living standards of developing countries.
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For his part, His Excellency Sadat Mansoor Naderi, commended the efforts made by the UAE government through ADFD to provide Afghanistan with the means and ability to attain their development goals through funding key infrastructure schemes that drive long-term growth.
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The Afghan Minister said: “Over the past few years and though ADFD’s AED 1 billion contribution, the Afghan government was able to develop initiatives across a range of economic sectors to facilitate the progress of several cities in Afghanistan. In a recent donation of USD 200 million by ADFD to advance infrastructure, we were able to build 3330 apartment units.
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<img src="https://www.adfd.ae/PublishingImages1/infographic-Afghanistan-En-Web_30_10_2016_15_24_31.jpg" width="700">
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ADFD tailors their development approach towards key infrastructure projects in Afghanistan to stimulate the economy; I look forward to future collaborations and investments by the Government of the UAE in public-private partnerships (PPP).”
ADFD and the Government of Afghanistan have completed three-and-a-half decades of cooperation towards achieving sustainable development in Afghanistan. Over the period, ADFD has provided the Afghan government with grants and concessionary loans towards development efforts. As of today, 16 projects in Afghanistan have been fully funded by ADFD - amounting to a net value of AED1.2 billion in various economic sectors - notably housing, transport and social and health services.
