Delegation of the International Investment Bank, headed by Deputy Chairman, Vladimir Liventsev, participated in the 38^th Annual Meeting of the Association of Development Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific (ADFIAP) in Nha Trang, Vietnam, on May 13−14.

For the first time, the IIB participated in the ADFIAP annual event as a full member of the Association, having upgraded its membership earlier in February. Previously, the Bank took part in the meetings as an observer. The main topic of this meeting was «DFIs & Sustainable Infrastructure: Policy Framework, Operational Best Practices and Challenges.»

During the event, Mr. Liventsev presented the opportunities for cooperation between the International Investment Bank and the banks and development institutions in Asia and the Pacific. A series of meetings were also held with national financial institutions, export-import agencies in the region and international development banks. The IIB continues to draw interest both in regard to its unique member state composition, having as its members countries from Europe, Asia and Latin America, as well as in terms of possibilities for cooperation the Bank can offer. Special attention was paid to potential projects in Vietnam, Mongolia and Russia in the areas of lending, export-import operations and equity investments.

The ADFIAP meeting also marked a very important event for the IIB as it received an award for its Small and Medium Enterprises Support Program, this being the second award the Bank has received this year — in April, the IIB was awarded for development of international banking co-operation at the 30^th Jubilee Conference of the BACEE. The IIB considers the SME sector as crucial for the economic development of its member states, and it became one of the Bank’s priorities right after its re-launch at the end of 2012.

As stated by Mr. Liventsev, «we actively support small and medium-sized enterprises in our member states, and our contribution to the development of this sector in Mongolia has been even acknowledged by Mongolian authorities — last October, the IIB Chairman of the Board, Nikolay Kosov, was awarded with the order of the Polar Star. The ADFIAP award once again demonstrates that it was a right decision to re-launch the Bank, and the IIB continues to contribute to its member states' economic development.»

Thus, the IIB moves forward carrying out its plans on strengthening ties with national and international development institutions in order to implement joint projects in its member states, aimed at sustainable development.