The United Nations Resident Coordinator’s Office in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector have announced the launch of their joint initiative’s newly-formed advisory committee.
On April 23, 2020, UNRCO and ICD signed a Letter of Understanding to conduct a study on the potential of Awqaf in contributing to the achievement of Saudi Arabia’s National Transformation Programme and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in KSA.
Today, UNRCO and ICD kicked off their first advisory committee meeting. The committee will play a major role in supporting the direction of the research study as it includes distinguished sustainable Islamic financing leaders whose focus will be to shape and guide the paper while working closely with the chairpersons.
The committee will be co-chaired by United Nations Resident Coordinator, Ms. Nathalie Fustier, and Director Development Effectiveness at ICD, Dr. Mohammed Alyami.
The chairpersons will oversee the overall process of the research, ensure proper direction to the committee and the research consultants, and ensure access to resources.
Members of the committee include the Chief Executive Officer of King Khalid Foundation, Princess Nouf Al Saud; G20 Development Working Group Chair, Princess Haifa Al-Mogrin; Deputy Governor, General Authority for Awqaf, Mr. Abdulrahman Alaqeel; Acting Director General, IRTI, Dr. Sami Al-Suwailem; Secretary General, CIBAFI, Dr. Abdelilah Belatik; Dean of Islamic Economics Institute, King Abdulaziz University, Dr. Abdullah Turkistani; and General Manager for Strategy and Alignment, Ministry of Economy and Planning, Mr. Majid Al Asfoor.
Fustier commented, “It is our pleasure to welcome the advisory committee and we look forward to engaging with the members over the coming months. The committee will be crucial to ensure that the research is solid and produces actionable recommendations.”
Alyami added, ”ICD is keen to work closely with UNRCO and the advisory committee members to conduct a referential research which will increase the Awqaf potential in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; while also assisting in reinforcing the economies of ICD member countries to develop certain vital sectors of economy and support any humanitarian and social action deemed necessary.”
