The OPEC Fund at 50: “The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.”

1976 

• The OPEC Special Fund established on January 28 with an initial endowment of US$800 million (following an agreement of the OPEC member countries in Algiers in 1975) 

• Ibrahim Shihata appointed first Director-General 

• The OPEC Special Fund becomes operational in August 

• First transaction signed – US$7.45 million balance of payments loan to Sudan 

1977 

• First agriculture sector project – US$1.65 million loan to Jordan for the Northeast Ghor Canal 

• First grant signed – US$1.5 million to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for the Central American Energy Program 

• First replenishment of the OPEC Fund’s capital resources agreed 

• International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) established following contributions from several international donors, including the OPEC Fund 

1978 

• 100th loan signed – US$3 million balance of payments agreement with Burkina Faso 

1979 

• The OPEC Fund moves to Palais Strudlhof, its first standalone Headquarters, in Vienna, Austria 

• First renewable energy project signed – US$3.5 million for the El Cajon Hydroelectric Project in Honduras 

1980 

• Renamed the OPEC Fund for International Development 

• Becomes permanent legal entity as an international development agency 

• Second replenishment agreed 

1981 

• Headquarters Agreement with Republic of Austria signed 

• Palais Erzherzog Wilhelm, also known as Deutschmeister-Palais, purchased as new Headquarters 

• Third replenishment agreed 

1982 

• The OPEC Fund moves into permanent Headquarters on Ringstrasse 

• First education project signed – US$3.3 million for Papua New Guinea 

• Disbursements exceed US$1 billion 

1983 

• Y. Seyyid Abdulai succeeds Ibrahim Shihata as Director-General 

• 100th grant signed – US$500,000 for the establishment of the African Fertilizer Development Center in Zimbabwe 

1985 

• First health project signed – US$3.2 million for Msambweni and Webuya Hospitals Project in Kenya 

• First livestock project signed – US$1.4 million for the Dembou Dairy Project in Niger 

• First primary education project signed – US$1.5 million for Benin 

1986 

• 10th anniversary seminar – member country ministers are joined by President of Austria, Rudolf Kirchschläger and former Chancellor of Austria, Bruno Kreisky 

1987 

• First vocational education projects signed – Loans to Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines for the Regional Vocational and Technical Training Project totaling US$2.5 million 

1988 

• First multisector project signed – US$4.8 million for the urban development Priority Works Project in Ghana 

• First higher education project signed – US$3 million for the Botswana Polytechnic Project 

1990 

• 500th signed loan goes to Madagascar for a US$5 million education project 

1991 

• US$10 million loan signed for Sudan’s Third Commodity Import Program to procure essential agricultural inputs 

• US$3.8 million loan committed for the Rural Roads Rehabilitation Project in Jamaica 

1994 

• First loan to emerging Europe signed – US$4.96 million for the Durres General Hospital Project in Albania 

1995 

• US$6 million loan committed to the Rural Electrification Project in Burkina Faso 

1996 

• US$2.5 million loan committed to the Atoll Schools Upgrading and Expansion Project in the Maldives 

1997 

• Cooperation begins with Carter Center on Guinea Worm Eradication Program 

• The OPEC Fund joins the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Debt Relief Initiative 

1998 

• The OPEC Fund website launched 

• Former US President Jimmy Carter visits Headquarters 

• US$4.3 million committed to the Bagre Dam Project in Burkina Faso together with World Bank, African Development Bank and other co-financers 

1999 

• Private Sector Operations start with approval of US$2.5 million loan to Banque Populaire de Mauritanie 

2000 

• Staff headcount reaches 100 

2001 

• US$8 million in loans committed to two major road rehabilitation projects in Tajikistan 

• HIV/AIDS account launched with an initial US$15 million allocation 

2002 

• Establishment of Special Account for Palestine 

2003 

• 1000th loan approved – US$6.6 million for a vocational training project in Namibia, the first operation in the country 

• Suleiman J. Al-Herbish (right) succeeds Y. Seyyid Abdulai as Director- General 

• US$20 million allocated to rapid food delivery in response to famine in Sub-Saharan Africa 

2004 

• Establishment of Blend Facility, a new public sector financing window, which leverages concessional financing to widen outreach to partner countries 

• Humanitarian aid to countries affected by the Southeast Asia earthquake and tsunami 

• US$9.9 million loan provided to the Sivas-Erzincan Development Project in Türkiye, boosting the agriculture sector and strengthening food security for more than 50,000 people 

2006 

• Rebranded as OFID, new logo introduced 

• United Nations General Assembly Observer status granted 

• Trade Finance operations begin with a commodity import support project in Seychelles 

• Inaugural Annual Award for Development given to the Zimbabwe branch of the NGO HUMANA People-to-People 

2007 

• Third OPEC Summit issues Riyadh Declaration: “We recognise that energy is essential for poverty eradication, sustainable development and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.” 

2008 

• The OPEC Fund launches the Energy for the Poor initiative 2009 

• The OPEC Fund makes first investment in the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB), becoming an institutional shareholder 

• US$600,000 grant to the King Hussein Cancer Foundation in Jordan for a new interventional radiology suite 

2010 

• First teacher training project signed – US$11 million loan for Malawi 

• First geothermal energy project signed – US$7 million loan for Djibouti 

2011 

• First grants disbursed under new special account for energy programs 

2012 

• US$1 billion pledge for Energy for the Poor initiative 

• US$100 million in emergency aid exceeded 

• First wind energy project signed – US$15 million private sector loan to Foundation Wind Energy II Limited in Pakistan 

• Cooperation with Austrian Development Agency begins with a US$500,000 grant for a solar thermal project in four southern African countries 

2013 

• US$600,000 grant funds a series of water, sanitation and hygiene interventions for cholera prevention in Cameroon and Chad 

2014 

• First solar energy project for a centralized grid signed – US$10 million loan for Falcon Ma’an solar power plant in Jordan 

• Grants totaling US$1 million to the Shell Foundation for clean cookstoves in Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean 

• Signed a US$20 million loan to Maldives in support of the Outer Islands Water Supply and Sewerage Facilities Project for 12,000 inhabitants 

2015 

• Young Professional Development Program (YPDP) begins 

• US$500,000 grant benefits a rural electrification solar mini-grid project in Guinea-Bissau 

2016 

• In conjunction with the 40th anniversary commemorations, the Equal Dreams campaign highlights the plight of refugees: Four grants signed totaling more than US$2 million to international refugee organizations 

• OPEC Fund monument erected outside the United Nations Offices in Vienna 

2017 

• US$17 million loan provided for Baynouna solar power plant in Jordan, the country’s largest green energy project at that time 

• Cooperation resumes with St. Vincent and the Grenadines with a US$18.52 million project rehabilitating more than 40 km of road 

2018 

• Abdulhamid Alkhalifa succeeds Suleiman J. Al-Herbish as Director-General 

2019 

• Strategic Framework 2030 launched 

• A US$36 million private sector loan funds the transmission section of Temane, a major power plant project in Mozambique, while a US$50 million public sector loan finances the facility itself 2020 

• US$1 billion allocated to help COVID-19-affected communities across the world and provide businesses with access to finance 

2021 

• Name reverts to the OPEC Fund for International Development 

• US$20 million loan benefits a water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) project in Sierra Leone’s capital Freetown 

• A US$18 million loan helps finance Egypt’s largest private sector solar power project Kom Ombo

• Inaugural credit rating of AA+, with Stable Outlook from Fitch Ratings 

• Palais Colloredo-Mannsfeld purchased to expand Headquarters in Vienna 

2022 

• Climate Action Plan adopted, calling for 40 percent of new annual financing to climate-relevant projects by 2030 

• Food Security Action Plan adopted 

• First OPEC Fund Development Forum in Vienna 

• Staff headcount reaches 200 2023 

• The OPEC Fund debuts on London Stock Exchange with inaugural US$1 billion SDG bond 

• US$48 million loan signed for Khizi-Absheron wind power plant in Azerbaijan 

• A €20 million loan in Albania and a US$20 million loan in Botswana support micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, as our first private sector loans to financial institutions in those countries 

2024 

• First sustainability-linked loans signed 

• First loan syndication with member country financial institution arranged, from Commercial Bank of Dubai, UAE to Banco Continental, Paraguay 

• A €50 million loan supports a trade finance facility for the commodities broker Sucden for procurement and export of traceable cocoa beans 

• The OPEC Fund announces a US$1 billion pledge in support of the Riyadh Global Drought Resilience Partnership 

• The OPEC Fund expands its Headquarters to include the newly renovated Palais Colloredo-Mannsfeld 

2025 

• Green-Blue Connect Initiative launched at COP30, endowed with US$3 billion 

• The OPEC Fund pledges up to US$2 billion for Mission 300 initiative, connecting 300 million people to electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2030 

• Small Island Developing States (SIDS) initiative recognized at International Conference on Financing for Development