Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) President Jin Liqun delivered a speech during the Plenary Session of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Leaders Summit on October 9-10, 2024 in Vientiane, Lao PDR. Held under the theme Enhancing Connectivity and Resilience, this summit was an opportunity for AIIB to further reinforce the Bank’s commitment to regional cooperation and infrastructure development in Southeast Asia. It marked AIIB’s first appearance at the summit, where the Bank was invited to speak in front of the ASEAN heads of states in the closed-door plenary session.
Highlights
- A strong commitment to resilience and connectivity. President Jin emphasized AIIB’s strong connection with ASEAN, as all 10 ASEAN member states are founding Members of the Bank. He highlighted AIIB’s focus on resilient connectivity and outlined the Bank’s commitment to increase cross-border connectivity financing to 25%-30% of our total project funding by 2030.
According to President Jin: “Resilient connectivity … is the essence of our mission to finance the Infrastructure for Tomorrow. AIIB’s investments bring regions together to ensure that global trade, technology and capital flows will continue without disruption. Since its inception nine years ago, AIIB has approved financing of nearly USD55 billion for 285 projects across 37 members.”
President Jin highlighted projects in Lao PDR, including the Monsoon Cross-border Wind Power Project and Xekaman Hydropower Plants, to illustrate how the Bank is committed to improving energy resilience and supporting cross-border trade and private capital mobilization in Southeast Asia. He also introduced the Bank’s three-year joint program with ASEAN and the Multilateral Cooperation Center for Development Finance (MCDF), which will enhance the capacity of ASEAN countries to identify and develop high-quality cross-border projects, underscoring our long-term support to the region.
President Jin concluded: “In order to support connectivity and resilience in Southeast Asia and beyond, development partners must address three further areas: identifying more and better financing, including from the private sector; ensuring more and better de-risking of projects; and encouraging more and better policies to create the right enabling environments. Only by working together can we ensure that we are meeting the needs of the communities we serve and driving forward our joint agenda of connectivity and resilience.”
- Strengthening partnerships. President Jin signed a three-year memorandum of understanding with Director Kouqing Li of the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO) during the summit to formalize AIIB’s commitment to enhance cooperation aimed at fostering regional macroeconomic resilience and sustainable development. This strategic partnership will leverage joint research, knowledge sharing, capacity building, and staff exchanges to create a more robust economic landscape for the region.
According to President Jin: “This partnership reflects our shared vision of fostering sustainable, resilient growth in Southeast Asia. AIIB is committed to financing the Infrastructure for Tomorrow, underpinned by rigorous analysis of local conditions and strong cooperation with local and regional partners. By strengthening joint efforts with AMRO, we are building a solid foundation for a more prosperous and inclusive future for all.”
- Strategic partnerships for growth. President Jin also engaged in a series of meetings with leaders to discuss existing partnerships and explore further areas of collaboration.
- Lao PDR’s Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone, Minister of Finance Santiphab Phomvihane and Minister of Public Works Ngampasong Muongmany – on the ongoing cooperation between AIIB and Lao PDR, with projects such as National Road 13 South Extension project which are aligned with the Bank’s connectivity and regional cooperation thematic priority, and how AIIB can further support infrastructure projects critical to Lao PDR's growth.
- Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Manet – on the ongoing cooperation between AIIB and Cambodia, including updates on the multi-year pipeline (Country Cooperation Framework (CCF) 2023-2025) and the Bank’s engagement with the ASEAN Connectivity agenda.
- Viet Nam’s Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính – on the ongoing cooperation between AIIB and Viet Nam, particularly in the country’s flagship mega transport projects.
- ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn – on the existing cooperation between AIIB and ASEAN. President Jin reiterated that ASEAN is a critical partner for AIIB in fulfilling the Bank’s core mandate to support connectivity and regional cooperation.
- United Nations (UN) Secretary General António Guterres – on the robust and growing engagement between AIIB and UN agencies, including the strong complementarities with UN agencies in supporting the Bank in policy advisory, project preparation, project implementation, monitoring and reporting.
- Indonesia’s Minister of Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto – on the Bank’s ongoing partnership with Indonesia, including the growing pipeline, and interest in supporting the incoming government’s flagship projects.
- World Bank Vice President for East Asia and Pacific Manuela V. Ferro – on areas of deeper cooperation between the two MDBs in the ASEAN region and collaboration in upcoming high-level events.
- International Monetary Fund (IMF) Deputy Managing Director Kenji Okamura – on AIIB’s interest in becoming a prescribed holder of Special Drawing Rights and various areas of collaboration, including collaboration around CPBF, the IMF Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST) and the climate roundtables.
These meetings reinforced AIIB’s role as a pivotal development partner in the region, particularly in leveraging private-sector resources to complement public investments and create sustainable and resilient infrastructure connectivity projects. In bilateral meetings with members, President Jin stressed the importance of efficient and effective project preparation and implementation to generate revenue, rather than low pricing, which often translates into project delays and implementation challenges.
AIIB’s presence at the ASEAN Leaders Summit and the partnerships forged and expanded through the key meetings reflect the Bank’s growing influence and impact in Southeast Asia. AIIB is fully committed to driving resilient infrastructure, from digital and physical connectivity to climate-focused initiatives.
