Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 30 October 2020, in the videoconferencing mode, chaired by the Russian side, the 16th meeting of the SCO Interbank Association Council was held, whose members are the chairmen of the boards of leading banks of the SCO member states.

Alexey Overchuk, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, addressed the participants with a welcoming speech.

The meeting was attended by SCO Secretary General Vladimir Norov. In his speech, he noted the complexity of the situation in the world in connection with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the need to develop joint efforts to mitigate the consequences for the economies and revitalize the ICO as an important public platform for the SCO. 

The pandemic has become a serious test for all mankind, and the current reality requires the search and determination of new economic priorities in such areas as food security, investment, innovation and high technologies, the development of the "green" and "digital" economy.

“Of course, the priority is to prevent the rupture of production chains and cooperation ties that have developed between the most important economic sectors of our countries, as well as to maintain and expand trade ties.

The Bishkek Declaration of the SCO summit emphasized the importance of expanding trade, economic and investment cooperation between the member states. It is necessary to accelerate the implementation of projects to expand the transport and communication capabilities of the region, develop infrastructure, create international multimodal centers for logistics, trade and tourism, and introduce innovative and energy-saving technologies.

It is these and other areas of cooperation that the Strategy for the Further Development of the SCO ICO until 2021, adopted in June 2017 in Astana, which provides for assistance in the modernization and innovative development of the economies of the SCO member states, as well as the implementation of cross-border infrastructure projects for the consistent formation of transport and logistics corridors in the region in order to create favorable conditions for the movement of goods and services in the SCO space,” V. Norov emphasized in his speech.

The SCO Secretary General highly appreciated the success of the current chairmanship of the Russian side in the SCO and the achievements of the Interbank Association as a whole.

“Despite the difficulties associated with the pandemic, in the framework of Russia’s chairmanship in the SCO this year, continuous work was carried out to enhance the role of the SCO in regional governance and deepen the coordination of multidisciplinary mechanisms for ensuring security, economic and humanitarian cooperation. A timely emphasis was made on strengthening the leading positions of the SCO in countering modern challenges and threats in the Eurasian space.”

We welcome the active position of the IBO to expand the practice of lending in national currencies and the priority use of national currencies in the implementation of joint projects within the Association.

In this regard, the Joint Approaches to the issue of expanding the use of national currencies in the SCO space, as well as the IBO’s roadmap to overcome the consequences of the pandemic for the economies of the SCO countries, deserves special attention and support," V. Norov emphasized. 

Speaking about the prospects of the Interbank Association, he noted that the practical activities of the IBO, which includes the largest state financial institutions of the SCO member states, promotes the expansion of cooperation ties, the creation of new points of economic growth, and the stimulation of trade and investment in the SCO space.

“At present, bilateral cooperation of member banks on credit lines and interbank loans provided for the implementation of projects on the territory of the SCO countries has established itself as the most effective form of cooperation within the framework of the association. However, in the field of improving financing of investment projects on a multilateral basis, there is still a large untapped potential of the Interbank Association.

It seems relevant to combine the efforts of the IBO with the SCO Business Council for the joint implementation of infrastructure projects in priority areas.

It is these and other areas of cooperation that the Strategy for the Further Development of the SCO ICO until 2021, adopted in June 2017 in Astana, is aimed at, which provides for assistance in the modernization and innovative development of the economies of the SCO member states, as well as the implementation of cross-border infrastructure projects for the consistent formation of transport and logistics corridors in the region in order to create favorable conditions for the movement of goods and services in the SCO space.

“We believe that the cooperation of the SCO ICO with international financial institutions and the Astana International Financial Center (AIFC) is useful. In 2019, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the SCO Secretariat and the AIFC, the implementation of which can be a good help in stepping up work on the creation of multilateral funding mechanisms for priority projects,” the SCO Secretary General said in his speech.

In conclusion, V. Norov emphasized the importance of the upcoming summit of the heads of the SCO states, which will be held on November 10, 2020, online under the chairmanship of the Russian side, and expressed confidence that its results will contribute to the further stable development of the region and for the benefit of the peoples living in it.

During the meeting, the heads of delegations signed a Roadmap at the IBO to overcome the consequences of the pandemic for the economies of the SCO countries, as well as a document on joint approaches to expanding the use of national currencies in the SCO space. 

As a result, a Protocol was signed. Chairmanship of the Council of the ICO SCO for the period from October 26, 2020 until October 25, 2021 passed to the State Savings Bank of the Republic of Tajikistan "Amonatbank".

The SCO Interbank Association (SCO IBO) was established in accordance with the Agreement on Interbank Cooperation (Association) within the SCO from 26 October 2005 and is a mechanism for financing and banking investment projects supported by the governments of the Organization’s member states in priority areas of cooperation. The members of the IBO Council meeting are the chairmen of the boards of the leading banks of the SCO member states.