THE HISTORY OF THE OPEC FUND
Also in 2006, the OPEC Fund launched its Annual Development Award for exceptional achievements in global development. Among the diverse global awardees is the 2008 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Muhammad Yunus. A year after the launch of the Development Award, the OPEC Fund also initiated a Scholarship Program, supporting outstanding young individuals from developing countries to pursue graduate studies in a development-related field. In 2015, the OPEC Fund launched its Young Professional Development Program to prepare the next generation of member country nationals for careers in international development. The period 2003-2013 was described by the OPEC Fund as a “decade of transformation” with a significant increase in business volume and external recognition: Public sector loans more than doubled during the Al-Herbish era, private sector loans increased seven- fold and US$350 million was provided in trade finance within only six years. A new blended finance window was created in 2004 in response to growing demand from partner countries. In addition, the OPEC Fund intensified its outreach and advocacy work. This included the Energy Poverty Initiative, working with partner countries and peer institutions towards the Millennium Development Goals, fulfilling obligations under the HIPC Initiative, involvement in international movements
Uzbekistan: Preschools for 30,000 children Joining a project co-financed by the Islamic Development Bank and private sponsors, the OPEC Fund in 2024 provided the Uzbek government with a US$20 million loan to set up 200 state-of-the-art preschools for 30,000 children in urban and rural areas. A quarter of places are reserved for children from low-income and socially vulnerable families, who are being enrolled on a priority basis. In parallel, the project is improving the quality and management of preschool education – revising curricula, materials and methodologies while also reforming teacher training with a stronger focus on evidence-based approaches. Further benefits include more jobs in teaching and childcare, particularly among women, as well as long-term contributions
to boost development effectiveness, including High-Level Forums in Paris, Accra and Busan, and supporting Arab countries in transition through the Deauville Partnership.
In 2024, the OPEC Fund
to national human capital. Uzbekistan, known as the “Land of the Blue Domes” for its many mosques and madrassas, is now the most populous country in Central Asia. With well over 35 million people, it is home to almost half the region’s total population. It is also a very young country, with close to a third of the population under the age of 14 and around 10 percent under 7 years of age.
provided the Uzbek government with a US$20 million loan to set up 200 preschools.
Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Muhammad Yunus won the 2008 OPEC Fund Development Award
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