EIB and FIDIC agrees cooperation agreement on shared objectives, including procurement and contracts.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) have signed a five-year memorandum of understanding (MoU) to foster cooperation on shared objectives and on effective procurement and contract management.
The EIB and FIDIC will strengthen their collaboration to ensure transparency and upholding high social and environmental standards in the implementation of infrastructure projects. To achieve this, the two organisations will share best practices and organise several activities – some of which are outlined below.
- Dialogue and expert meetings between both parties.
- Promotion of knowledge-sharing and cross institutional learning.
- Participation in the main working groups and training courses relating to the use and application of the FIDIC documents and on matters of common interest.
- Participation in FIDIC’s multilateral development banks (MDBs) advisory group (FIDIC International Financial Institutions Committee).
- Involvement in FIDIC training programmes for MDBs and FIDIC contract users.
- Participation in FIDIC conferences and webinars.
Commenting on the agreement, FIDIC chief executive Dr Nelson Ogunshakin said: “I am absolutely delighted that FIDIC has signed this landmark agreement with the EIB and that our two organisations will be working closely on areas of mutual interest. The EIB is the largest multilateral financial institution in the world and the MoU we have signed is a big boost for FIDIC and its members, the EIB, international consulting and engineering firms and also the wider global construction sector. We are really looking forward to working with EIB and to building our partnership over the next five years.”
Ricardo Mourinho Félix, EIB vice-president, said: “I am delighted to sign this MoU between the European Investment Bank and international engineering federation FIDIC. This deepens our cooperation to strengthen high standards around procurement. The EIB is deeply committed to sharing the best practices in the procurement and implementation of infrastructure projects. Ensuring transparency, preventing corruption and upholding high social and environmental standards are essential key elements for projects backed by the EIB to bring value added to our citizens. We take this extremely seriously and this partnership is part of this commitment.”
This latest agreement with the EIB further strengthens FIDIC’s relationship with global banks and international funding institutions to the extent that the organisation has now concluded cooperation agreements, MoUs or licensing agreements with the majority of the international funding organisations active in the global infrastructure sector.
FIDIC believes that such agreements will benefit the whole industry, create more certainty in the market and lead to an increased adoption of the standard FIDIC contracts which promote a fair and balanced approach to project management and delivery across major global construction contracts.