JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia, October 26, 2026/APO Group/ –The International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) (www.ITFC-idb.org), the trade finance and trade development arm of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group, has surpassed US$100 billion in cumulative trade finance approvals since commencing operations in 2008.

The milestone marks a significant chapter in ITFC’s contribution to supporting trade, economic resilience and sustainable development across its Member Countries.

 




 
 

Over nearly two decades, ITFC has provided and mobilized trade finance to support essential imports and exports, strengthen food and energy security, connect producers and exporters to markets, and provide businesses with the financing and inputs required to operate and grow.

The development impact extends beyond the scale of financing. In 2025 alone, ITFC-supported operations contributed to food access for approximately 24 million households and electricity access for an estimated 17.8 million households, reached around 460,000 farmers, and provided access to finance to 546 corporates and SMEs.

More than one-third of ITFC’s cumulative approvals have supported Least Developed Countries, reflecting the Corporation’s focus on markets where access to trade finance is often most constrained.

ITFC has also played an important countercyclical role during periods of global and regional disruption. Through financial crises, the COVID-19 pandemic and recent geopolitical shocks, the Corporation continued supporting critical trade flows at times when commercial trade credit became increasingly constrained.

Commenting on the milestone, Eng. Adeeb Yousuf Al Aama, Chief Executive Officer, ITFC said: “Surpassing US$100 billion in cumulative approvals is more than a measure of scale. It represents nearly two decades of partnership with our Member Countries and a sustained commitment to using trade as a driver of development, resilience and opportunity. Behind this milestone are essential commodities delivered, businesses supported, markets connected and livelihoods strengthened. It also demonstrates what can be achieved when ITFC combines its own resources with the capital, expertise and partnerships of the wider IsDB Group and our financing partners.”

The milestone comes as the IsDB Group advances implementation of its Ten-Year Strategic Framework 2026–2035 and Five-Year Corporate Strategies 2026–2030. ITFC will build on its track record by scaling trade finance sustainably, mobilizing greater private and institutional capital, expanding access for SMEs, advancing digital trade finance solutions, and deepening partnerships across Member Countries.

As it enters its next phase, ITFC remains focused on strengthening trade as a catalyst for economic growth, resilience and shared prosperity across the markets it serves.

LONDON, United Kingdom, October 26, 2026/APO Group/ –African Collaborations Group (ACG) (www.ACGafrica.com), the leading strategic project origination and collaboration platform focused on the industrialisation of sport in Africa through the origination of bankable sport and entertainment district ecosystems, today announced the appointment of Rick Taylor to its Advisory Board.

 




 
 

Rick Taylor is one of Africa’s most experienced tourism strategists, with more than three decades of expertise in destination development and business events, also known as MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Events and Exhibitions). As Founder and Chief Executive Officer of The Business Tourism Company, a Cape Town-based international consultancy, he has led more than 100 tourism advisory, strategy and training projects worldwide and has been the strategic architect of national destination strategies and Convention Bureau projects across Africa, including in South Africa, Namibia, Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Uganda, Senegal, Cameroon, Zambia, Togo and Mozambique.

Rick was the architect of Africa’s first Convention Bureau in Cape Town, which has maintained the #1 position in Africa in the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) city ranking for more than two decades. Since then, he has devoted his career to positioning business events as a strategic pillar of tourism, investment and socio-economic development across the continent.

The global business events sector has now surpassed pre-pandemic levels, reaching an estimated USD 1.5 trillion, yet Africa hosts only around 3% of the world’s association meetings. Rick has spent his career addressing this structural gap by helping countries build the strategies, institutions, infrastructure and international positioning required to compete for a greater share of the global business events economy.

A defining feature of Rick’s approach is what he calls “Lalibela thinking” — a 50- to 100-year perspective that sees MICE not simply as an events industry, but as long-term economic infrastructure capable of driving investment, tourism, job creation, skills development and poverty alleviation. His work has helped shape business events infrastructure, convention bureaus and national MICE strategies across Africa.

His appointment to the ACG Advisory Board reflects a core ACG conviction: that large-scale sport and entertainment districts must be conceived from the outset as integrated economic ecosystems spanning sport, entertainment, hospitality, tourism and business events. Convention Centres, conference facilities and other business events infrastructure are essential components of such districts. They can generate high-value activity on non-match and non-concert days, strengthen year-round hotel and hospitality demand, and connect the district to the wider tourism and business travel economy of its host country.

Rick therefore brings to ACG a rare combination of strategic and practical expertise: deep knowledge of African destination development; pan-continental relationships with tourism ministries, national tourism organisations and other public-sector stakeholders; hands-on experience in establishing Convention Bureaus and business events infrastructure; and a long-term perspective on the role of business events in African socio-economic development. These capabilities are directly relevant to ACG’s work in originating and structuring large-scale sport and entertainment district projects across the continent.

“Rick Taylor is one of the most respected voices in African business tourism, and his career has literally built the Convention Bureau architecture that powers business events across the continent. His appointment reflects a foundational conviction at ACG: that sport and entertainment districts are not stadiums and concert halls standing alone, but integrated ecosystems that generate value across sport, entertainment, hospitality and business events. Sport, entertainment and convention infrastructure is district infrastructure. His presence on our Advisory Board significantly strengthens ACG’s capacity to originate projects that combine these dimensions from the outset,” said Nicolas Pompigne-Mognard (www.Pompigne-Mognard.com), Founder and Executive Chairman of ACG.

The ACG Advisory Board provides strategic guidance as ACG originates and structures large-scale sport and entertainment district projects across the continent, aligning governments, development finance institutions (DFIs), investors, sport bodies and infrastructure partners to support the development of financially sustainable, mixed-use district ecosystems.

Africa’s sport economy is projected to reach $20 billion by 2035, yet the continent continues to lack the integrated district ecosystems required to support large-scale development. ACG addresses this gap by originating bankable sport and entertainment district projects, moving beyond single-venue development models towards mixed-use, revenue-generating and financially sustainable district ecosystems.

Through its collaborative model, ACG convenes governments, PPP authorities and regulators, development finance institutions, private investors, developers, designers and engineers, legal and transaction advisors, operators, sport federations and leagues, event promoters, media and broadcast partners, academic institutions and host communities, creating structured pathways from concept to feasibility, bankability and delivery.

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia, October 25, 2026/APO Group/ –The Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC) (http://ICIEC.IsDB.org), a Shariah-based multilateral insurer and member of the Islamic Development Bank Group, is pleased to announce that Moody’s Ratings has affirmed the Corporation’s Aa3 Insurance Financial Strength Rating (IFSR) with a Stable Outlook, reflecting the agency’s ongoing confidence in the Corporation’s strong financial fundamentals and strategic importance as a member of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group.

 




 
 

Moody’s cited ICIEC’s strengthening standalone credit profile, including its role as a leading multilateral provider of Shariah-compliant export credit and investment insurance and reinsurance solutions. The agency highlighted improved underwriting performance supported by enhanced risk management, strong asset quality and liquidity, and strong capital adequacy. The Corporation’s preferred creditor status among its Member Countries further reinforces its financial strength and institutional standing.

The rating also benefits from the strong institutional and shareholder support of the IsDB and sovereign shareholders, including Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Commenting on the rating affirmation, Dr. Khalid Khalafalla, Chief Executive Officer of ICIEC, stated: “This affirmation is a strong endorsement of ICIEC’s financial resilience and our ability to manage risks effectively in an increasingly complex global environment. It strengthens our position as a trusted multilateral partner, enabling us to expand our reach, mobilise investment and deliver meaningful development impact across our Member Countries through innovative Shariah-compliant insurance solutions.”

The Stable Outlook primarily reflects expected ongoing shareholder support, alongside expectations of continued risk management improvements and strong financial fundamentals as ICIEC expands and diversifies its operations while maintaining prudent underwriting discipline. Moody’s also identified ICIEC’s exposure to geopolitical risks and its smaller operational scale relative to peers as moderating factors.