WNAM REPORT: Deputy Minister of Finance, Suahasil Nazara, and his Saudi Arabian counterpart Abdulmuhsen S. Alkhalaf discussed several matters, including the strategic role of Indonesia in the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), at a recent meeting.
The two leaders held the bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) Annual Meeting held on September 25 and 26, 2024, in Uzbekistan.
“Currently, Indonesia stands as the third-largest shareholder in the Islamic Development Bank,” Nazara noted in a statement received from his ministry in Jakarta on Tuesday.
He said that Indonesia has proposed an experienced candidate for the vice presidency of the IsDB.
“I sought Saudi Arabia’s support for the candidate from Indonesia,” he informed.
The two leaders also touched upon matters related to Indonesia’s Hajj Fund Management Agency (BPKH) Limited during their meeting.
“We talked about BPKH Limited, which stands as the institution that manages Indonesia’s Hajj funds. I expected Saudi Arabia to support the agency,” Nazara said.
He further said that Deputy Minister Alkhalaf commended BPKH Limited for placing capital in his country.
The two figures also brought up Indonesia’s ongoing transition to the new government, which will be led by Prabowo Subianto.
In this regard, Alkhalaf expressed his belief to Nazara that the upcoming power transition would not negatively affect the good relations between the countries.
Indonesia’s representative then expressed the hope that his country and the Gulf State will share the same perspective to drive the AIIB to bring about infrastructure development progress in Asia.
He also described the bilateral meeting as a warm, productive, and valuable one despite its briefness.
“Hopefully, the results of this discussion would bring more benefits to both Indonesia and Saudi Arabia,” he added.
