National Bank of Tajikistan and the International Finance Corporation have discussed issues of cooperation

On November 8, 2022 the Chairman of National Bank of Tajikistan Kholiqzoda Hokim Hikmatullo met with Ms. Hela Cheikhrouhou, IFC’s Regional Vice President for the Middle East, Central Asia, Turkey, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

At the beginning of the meeting, the Chairman of National Bank of Tajikistan Kholiqzoda Hokim greeted the delegation of the International Finance Corporation and expressed satisfaction with bilateral cooperation in the development of banking system.

During the meeting, the Chairman of National Bank of Tajikistan has attracted the attention of representatives of the International Finance Corporation to development of the following priority areas: financial market, infrastructure, production, industry, agricultural entrepreneurship and noted that for their growth it is necessary to increase the volume of long-term concessional lending, especially to small and medium-sized businesses, remote mountainous regions, and in particular women entrepreneurs.

Hokim Kholiqzoda noting the important role of development partners in the ensuring a stable growth of banking system of the Republic of Tajikistan, especially the role of International Finance Corporation has added that at the moment, due to the occurred complicated geopolitical situation, the economy of the Republic of Tajikistan needs effective cooperation with international financial institutions.

Taking into account the development of activities of commercial banks in the Republic of Tajikistan for recent years, the establishment of direct correspondent relations for our country is of great importance. Emphasizing the need for mutually beneficial cooperation between development partners in this area, in order to assist in the establishing relations between credit institutions of Tajikistan and banks in the Europe and America, we approve the recommendations in this area, - said the Chairman of the National Bank of Tajikistan.

Ms. Hela Cheikhrouhou, IFC’s Regional Vice President for the Middle East, Central Asia, Turkey, Afghanistan and Pakistan in turn, has expressed satisfaction with the annual development of banking system of Tajikistan and its significant achievements. International Finance Corporation, - said Ms. Hela Cheikhrouhou - plans to contribute to the implementation of many projects in the Republic of Tajikistan and determine the scope of cooperation in this picturesque country with an ancient culture. In her opinion, long-term bilateral cooperation has shown that the National Bank of Tajikistan has made a significant contribution to the development of the country's economy.

During this important meeting, the parties exchanged views on the issues of expanding technical cooperation in the development of the insurance sector, attracting long-term advisers to the financial stability sector, further strengthening the mechanisms for regulating and controlling the activities of credit financial institutions, including the identification, management and mitigation of the impact of financial risks, conducting stress tests of banks' activities and the banking control system within the framework of the Basel standards, improving the methodology and the use of technology for collecting and analyzing information in the field of the payment system, developing a concept for the introduction of a single identification bank number, establishing an Interbank Identification Center under the NBT, further strengthening the mechanisms for regulating and controlling the activities of payment system entities in the field of providing remote payment services, maintaining the concept of cashless payments for government services, creation of a regulatory framework for the introduction of a single switchboard for payment market participants and other important issues.

It should be noted that during the meeting, the parties have discussed the development of non-cash payments system and added that year by year Tajikistan achieves good results in this direction and makes a significant contribution to the economic growth of the country.

Chairman of the National Bank of Tajikistan Kholiqzoda Hokim once again has expressed his interest in continuing and efficient cooperation and noted that in order to ensure economic growth and expand the banking system of Tajikistan he supports the creative initiatives of this influential world organization and will take effective measures to implement them.

At the end of the meeting, bilateral cooperation between the National Bank of Tajikistan and the International Finance Corporation was considered as well as the forecast for the further development of the country's financial sector, attraction of foreign direct investment in the financial sector of Tajikistan and other issues.

Press Division
NBT