The Kingdom of Morocco was chosen as a headquarters country, and the Federation was recognized as an institution operating within the framework of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, during the meetings of foreign ministers of Islamic countries held in the Republic of Azerbaijan in June 2006, and then several different meetings were held in a number of Islamic countries on the sidelines of the annual meetings of the Bank Group. Islamic Development.

Last year, with the care and great attention of the Tenders Department of the Islamic Development Bank, a group of dedicated people took it upon themselves to initiate active procedures and practical steps to revive and activate the Federation of Islamic Countries Contractors, so that it can exercise its desired role, especially in the current stage that is witnessing rapid global developments and major political and economic changes. The emergence of the phenomena of globalization, the market economy, digital technological transformations, climate and environmental challenges, and in light of the giant economic blocs, in addition to the challenges resulting from the Corona pandemic and its effects on all economic sectors in all countries of the world, as well as the harsh economic consequences of the Russian-Ukrainian war.

Preparing the vision for activating the federation:

A vision was prepared to revive the Federation, and it was a comprehensive vision based on the combined efforts of all those responsible for the contracting industry in Islamic countries, as well as governments and organizations under the umbrella of the Islamic Development Bank in its capacity as a financier of projects and activities aimed at achieving the goals of comprehensive economic and social development in Islamic countries.

The vision emphasized the importance of establishing practical mechanisms and providing an organizational climate to activate and strengthen the role of the Federation, especially since all Islamic countries agree on almost the same developmental goals and ambitions that the Federation aims for. It pointed to the challenges that hinder the desired activation and ways to overcome them, and the factors that previously hindered the progress of work and which should be Correcting it with current reality data and future expectations.

The vision stressed the necessity of reviewing the structural and organizational structure of the Federation, establishing regulations governing its work, amending the statute, and translating solutions and recommendations into short- and long-term decisions and action plans, to reach future visions and directions that enhance the role of the Federation and achieve its goals and objectives for which it was established.

The vision was presented during the annual meetings of the Islamic Development Bank Group, which were held last year in Kazakhstan, where it was approved and action steps began on its basis.

Work group:

Initially, a small working group was formed to undertake the task of reviving and activating this federation. It consisted of Engineer Abu Bakr Idris - former Vice President of the Federation, Engineer Hassan Abdel Aziz - President of the African Federation of Contractors’ Organizations, Mr. Ali Fakher Al-Sanafi - President of the Arab Contractors Federation, and Engineer Mohamed Sami. Saad - President of the Egyptian Federation of Construction Contractors, Engineer Abdel Majeed Kosher - President of the Libyan Building Contractors Syndicate, and Dr. Engineer Malik Ali Dongola - former President of the Sudanese Contractors Federation, and under the sponsorship and follow-up of the Tenders Department of the Islamic Development Bank, represented by the Director of the Department, Mr. Amer Ghani Mir, and Dr. Hisham Mirghani.

:Working group meetings

The mini-working group held several meetings via (video conference), where it reviewed the methodologies contained in the vision for activating the federation and reviewed, amended, and added the agreed-upon suggestions, then crystallized them into a tangible reality. It was agreed in principle to work with the amended statute so that active membership would be through Contractors’ federations and bodies in Islamic countries, provided that contracting companies wishing to obtain membership are given the opportunity after fulfilling the controls and conditions that are agreed upon and approved in the General Assembly.

It was also agreed to invite the heads and representatives of contractors’ federations and organizations in Islamic countries to attend a consultative meeting to implement and develop this vision, and to evaluate the opinions and proposals received from members for this purpose, especially after the Islamic Development Bank agreed to host the first general assembly meeting of thefederation on the sidelines of the Bank Group meetings scheduled for the first week of June in Sharm El-Sheikh. Dr. Engineer Malik Dongola was assigned to temporarily assume the duties of Secretary-General and carry out his work from the headquarters of the Egyptian Contractors Union.

The committee proceeded to amend the draft statute of the federation in light of the opinions of the members of the small committee and the recommendations of the general assembly held in Khartoum in 2012. The amended statute adopted an active membership system for both federations and contracting companies in Islamic countries, replacing the previous statute that limited active membership only to companies. The draft statute was reviewed by a committee prepared by the presidents of the African, Arab, and Egyptian federations. It was also translated into English and French, and paper copies of the draft statute were printed in the three languages: Arabic, English, and French.

Through (video conferencing) technology, and great efforts; Many heads and representatives of business federations from the countries of Jordan, Bahrain, Benin, Bangladesh, Turkey, Algeria, Tunisia, Sudan, Iraq, Palestine, Ivory Coast, Lebanon, Libya, Egypt, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, and Yemen responded to the invitation. Heads of some contracting companies, and representatives of the Islamic Development Bank. The President of the African Union of Contractors’ Organizations, and the President of the Arab Contractors Union, where the minutes of the working group meeting, the draft statute, and the steps to prepare for the General Assembly meeting in Sharm El Sheikh were reviewed.

A consultative meeting was held for members of the Union in Islamic countries via video conference technology, and a large number of heads and members of contractor organizations and bodies from fifteen Islamic countries participated in the meeting, in addition to the Egyptian-African Businessmen Association, which was an active presence   Represented by the Construction Committee and some contracting companies, major bodies and unions emerged and expressed their desire to participate in the union, demanding that thoughtful, practical steps be taken to establish a strong union that is practical and not formal, calling for caution and improving performance. A large number of heads and delegations of 21 organizations, unions and federations of contractors from major countries participated in the meeting: such as Egypt, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Bangladesh, Somalia, Lebanon, Jordan, Sudan, Palestine, Tunisia, Morocco, Libya, Algeria, Bahrain, Yemen, and Benin. , Burkina Faso, and other countries, in addition to the Director of the Tenders Department and the Head of the Training Department in the Project Management of the Islamic Bank.

: General Assembly consultative meeting

The first general assembly meeting of the federation was held on the sidelines of the annual meetings of the Islamic Development Bank Group, which were held in Sharm El-Sheikh between June 1 and 4, 2022, under the slogan (After recovering from the pandemic: resilience and sustainability). The largest federations and syndicates attended, including the Egyptian Federation of Building and Construction Contractors, which includes all Egyptians involved in contracting activities, whether they are natural persons (individuals) or legal entities (financial and joint-stock companies). The number of contractors registered with this union is more than 36 thousand companies, and it also includes in its membership non-Egyptians working in the contracting activity, as correspondent members, and their membership is limited to the period necessary to carry out their activity within the Arab Republic of Egypt. It is a good news that a high-level delegation from the Saudi Contractors Authority, a body that despite its short lifespan has proven its existence on the ground, is led by young people whom we consider to be among the best young people, equipped with knowledge, knowledge and experience to deal with the world, as the Saudi Contractors Authority includes more than 11 thousand Saudi contractors. And hundreds of non-Saudi contractors. The authority’s mission is to regulate the construction sector, through developing and implementing high-quality regulatory standards, encouraging innovation, developing skills, improving communication in the sector, and achieving economic sustainability. It has an electronic platform that we invite workers in this sector to view and benefit from its information, services and studies. We thank the Saudi Contractors Authority for its invitation to host the meeting in the Holy City of Mecca and to bear the travel and accommodation costs for the members of the delegations.

The meeting was also attended by representatives of the Iraqi Contractors Union, which was founded in 1984 AD. It is a professional organization with legal personality and administrative and financial independence. This union aims to take care of organizing and developing the activities of Iraqi contractors, and to enhance their role in the national development process. To achieve its objectives, the Union registers operating contracting companies and contractors in Iraq, including companies operating in construction contracting and electrical and mechanical contracting, and classifies them into grades starting from the excellent grade and ending with the fifth grade based on the company’s capital and the work carried out by it with the approval of a special committee (the Contractors Registration Committee) in which it is represented. A number of relevant ministries are based in the Iraqi Ministry of Planning. The Union seeks to familiarize contractors with modern methods of contracting implementation and technology transfer, to represent them before government agencies and similar professional organizations in Iraq and abroad, and to strive to guarantee contractors’ material and moral rights. Iraqi contractors contributed to reconstruction and construction operations and the implementation of strategic development projects in all governorates of Iraq before and after 2003 AD. The Union is currently headed by Mr. Ali Fakher Sanafi, Chairman of the Union’s Board of Directors, who was elected at the end of 2016, and began its new session at the beginning of 2017. The Union includes more than 30,000 registered members from construction companies and contractors.

Also at the consultative meeting was the Turkish Contractors Association (TCA), an independent, non-profit professional organization based in Ankara. The association was established in 1952 AD and represents the leading contracting companies in Türkiye. Its members' business volume includes approximately 70% of all local contracting works and 90% of all international contracting works carried out so far by Turkish contracting companies. From the beginning of the 1970s until the end of 2021 AD, Turkish contractors completed more than 11,000 projects in 131 countries, and the volume of their work abroad reached 453 billion US dollars. In addition to providing contracting services according to international standards inside and outside Turkey, approximately 75% of the members of the Turkish Contractors Association are also active in various fields of construction industry investments, manufacturing, engineering and consulting, and the activity extends to energy, health and tourism. The objectives of the Turkish Contractors Association are to: increase the competitiveness of its members in national and international markets, defend the interests of its members and strengthen their positions, encourage cooperation and solidarity among members, build and strengthen strategic alliances with public and private bodies inside and outside Turkey, promote professional standards and work ethics, and provide advice to entities. Governmental awareness of legal, economic and technical issues related to the construction industry, and raising public awareness on issues related to the industry.

It is also a good news that a large, high-level delegation from the Jordanian Contractors Syndicate, headed by the Captain and his deputy, was an active presence in Tashkent last year. The Jordanian Contractors Syndicate was founded in 1972 and participates in all activities related to construction inside and outside Jordan. It is an active and founding member of the Arab Contractors Union and the Union of Jordanian Contractors. Contractors from Islamic countries, and participates in meetings of the World Bank and the International Confederation of Contractors. The union aims to consolidate harmony and cooperation among members and prevent unfair competition between them, in accordance with the rules and ethics of practicing the profession stipulated in the bylaws, and to participate in resolving professional disputes that occur between the contractor and the employer, and to participate with the Ministry of Public Works and Housing in developing instructions for classifying, qualifying and developing contractors. It recommends to the Ministry of Public Works and Housing the amendment of laws, regulations and instructions related to the profession. It works to use local resources and expertise in implementing contracting. It contributes to training and development programs for technical and professional personnel working in the field of contracting in cooperation with the Vocational Training Foundation. The union works to collect information related to the profession. Preserving, circulating and exchanging it with other institutions and concerned parties, and for everything that helps the union achieve its professional goals, and preserving and classifying information and statistics about contractors and the work they undertake. Al-Nakalah publishes specialized magazines and periodicals for construction affairs, and has hosted many conferences, seminars and workshops related to the construction sector with local, Arab and international participation.

The Egyptian African Businessmen Association had an active presence   Represented by members  Construction Committee Perhaps this active and honorable presence will be a good omen for this union.

During the meeting, it was agreed to select a working group consisting of Engineer Abu Bakr Idris - former Vice President of the Union, Engineer Hassan Abdel Aziz - President of the African Contractors Union, Engineer Sami Saad - President of the Egyptian Contractors Union, Mr. Ali Al-Sanafi - President of the Union of Arab and Iraqi Contractors, and Eng. Ayman Al-Khudairi - Head of the Jordanian Contractors Syndicate, Engineer Zakaria Abdel Qader - Chairman of the Contractors Authority in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and Dr. Engineer Malek Dongola, charged with the duties of Secretary-General of the Union.

It was agreed that the working group would draft the basic statute of the federation, choose the headquarters country, and prepare to hold an in-person founding general assembly within three months. The invitation submitted by the Saudi Contractors Authority to host the in-person general assembly in Mecca was approved.

:Declaration of principles

It was also agreed during the meeting on a declaration of principles, which includes representatives of contractors' federations, bodies, and unions in Islamic countries - belonging to an Islamic nation with a single faith, traditions, and spiritual values united by the same interests and challenges, meeting on the sidelines of the meetings of the governors of the Islamic Development Bank, hosted by the Republic of Egypt, and aiming to activate and revive the Contractors Union in Islamic countries, as a professional Islamic institution that undertakes the development of the contracting sector as one of the pillars of Islamic economic cooperation and integration, and contributes to enabling national companies to exercise their desired role in achieving comprehensive growth and development for all Islamic countries. They express gratitude for the generous hospitality in the land of Kenana and appreciate the importance of the role played by the Islamic Development Bank in financing development projects in Islamic countries and their positive support for the establishment of the federation. They appreciate the constructive effort made by the preparatory committee that volunteered to revive the federation and the fruitful work they accomplished in a short period of time. They also extend their thanks to the presidents of the African, Arab, and Egyptian federations for supporting them and supporting the tasks of the temporary General Secretariat and facilitating its work.

Tasks of the temporary committee

The announcement indicated the formation of a committee headed by the Vice President of the Contractors Federation in Islamic Countries and the membership of representatives from federations, bodies, and unions in Islamic countries that wish to participate in the committee, so that it would undertake the following tasks:

The statute - within a maximum period of three months - in light of the comments and suggestions received from the members, with the assistance of a specialized legal office to study the system and the observations) provided and to benefit from similar experiences in various countries, and then prepare the draft system in its final form, and members’ participation may be accepted. In the financial costs of accomplishing this.

Proposing the date for holding the General Assembly to approve the Federation’s statute within 15 days from the end of the three-month period specified for completing the draft statute.

Continuous communication with federations, unions, and contractors’ bodies in Islamic countries that have not yet participated, to encourage them to participate in the work of the Federation, by highlighting the advantages, incentives, and common interests.

Formulating and crystallizing visions and strategies that achieve the Federation’s goals, communicating with members to enrich them with proposals, and bringing viewpoints closer together to reach an appropriate formula.

Activating the agreed-upon visions in a practical form that brings public benefit to the members and their countries, and achieves the desired goals of the Federation, by establishing practical mechanisms and providing an effective and distinguished organizational climate.

Communicate with corresponding official and unofficial bodies and institutions; In order to benefit from their capabilities in developing the Federation’s work and tasks and giving it the desired organizational strength and effectiveness.

Deepening and strengthening relations between members of the Federation in all fields, especially the economic field, and in particular the building and construction sector, the Federation’s field of work.

Introducing the Federation, highlighting its goals, and disseminating its literature and visions through modern means, with a focus on strengthening convictions in the importance and feasibility of organized collective action.

Study and propose the value of members’ subscriptions to the Federation.

Study and propose a host for the General Secretariat and the Federation’s headquarters.

The Saudi Contractors Authority was creative in holding several side meetings in Sharm El-Sheikh between it and the Jordan Syndicate, the Iraqi Contractors Federation, the head of the work group, and the designated Secretary-General, to agree and coordinate on the future steps and procedures that will be taken in light of the decisions and recommendations of the General Assembly meeting, and in a way that achieves the Federation’s goals and accelerates the progress of... Creation and activation process.

A delegation from the Federation also met with the Vice President of the Islamic Development Bank for Operations Management and spoke on behalf of the Federation, Engineer Zakaria Abdel Qader, expressing the members’ gratitude for the Bank’s efforts to support the Federation, and explaining the arrangements and future steps to implement the recommendations of the General Assembly.

Advantages of establishing a contractors' federation in Islamic countries

The Islamic world represents a model that stimulates cooperation and joint integration among the countries belonging to it, due to the existence of common constants, values, goals, and ambitions, in addition to historical civilizational ties, and the ability of the Islamic faith and culture to deepen and strengthen Islamic relations in all fields, especially the economic field, in addition to the availability of human resources. It is significant, reaching more than 1.6 billion people, representing a quarter of the world's population.

Within the large area of the Islamic world, there are many natural resources, expertise, human competencies, and capital necessary to establish major development projects, in addition to the wide market that Islamic countries enjoy, which represents an opportunity for the success of the required integration in the field of construction.

Hence, the establishment of a contractors' federation in Islamic countries as an institution that brings together contractors' federations and unions and companies working in the field of contracting will ensure the achievement of many advantages and the exchange of experiences and benefits between Islamic countries, through full employment of Islamic capabilities in sharing resources and benefiting from the advantages of each country.

The establishment of this federation is also a means to strengthen the Islamic contracting sector, enhance the ability of Islamic contracting companies to implement development projects, compete with foreign companies, and develop the skills of workers in the sector according to the needs of the Islamic construction market, which ultimately means employing large numbers of workforce in Islamic countries. Alleviating poverty, absorbing huge capital investments, providing basic support for the development of national economies, stimulating growth, improving the level of service provision, operating other economic sectors, increasing the gross national product, achieving sustainable development goals, encouraging the building materials industries sector in Islamic countries, and opening welcomed opportunities to sell its products, and provide joint investment to establish heavy equipment industries.

The federation will also be concerned with exchanging information and data about proposed projects and future projects, providing a mechanism for resolving disputes in construction and engineering contracts, and will contribute to supporting scientific research in the field of developing the construction industry, building capabilities and transferring modern technology, and encouraging innovation in building and construction methods. It will also help facilitate the registration of expertise houses and consultants at various levels move between Islamic countries to implement major projects.

The federation will work to provide technical assistance and provide education and vocational training in member states that do not have advanced training centers, and encourage the establishment of blocs between companies and contracting institutions through large entities that have the ability to confront the expansion of the Islamic market, which will raise economic growth rates based on the companies' own capabilities. Contracting, and increasing the connection between the economies of Islamic countries as a result of the construction sector's connection with various economic sectors, which in turn protects the economies of these countries and provides free currencies that used to go to foreign companies.

Challenges facing the activation of the federation:

Despite the utmost importance of this federation and the opportunities and benefits that the construction sector in Islamic countries will gain as a result of its activation and revival, there are many challenges facing it, the most prominent of which is the lack of sufficient financial resources and financing necessary for the federation to carry out its activities and achieve its goals, in light of the high costs of travel, accommodation, and hosting for all participants, as a result of the members' failure to pay their financial obligations to the federation. There is also another challenge that is no less important, which is the lack of sufficient cooperation between governments and the federation and the failure of decision-makers to interact with the federation's outputs, which causes a decline in members' confidence in the federation's capabilities as a result of the lack of binding of its decisions and outputs.

There are general challenges represented by the lack of financing plans for the contracting sector in Islamic countries as a result of the difficulty of obtaining long-term credit facilities from commercial banks.

Islamic countries also suffer from weak integration and coordination in the field of building and construction, in addition to the absence of political and social stability, and the deterioration of security that some countries suffer from.

There are other challenges resulting from the multiplicity of governmental, federation, and civil institutions and agencies supervising contractors in some Islamic countries. This complicates the process of joining the federation until differences are resolved and a single body responsible for the sector is determined.

s are resolved and a single body responsible for the sector is determined.

:Means of solution

• Government support and support for the Federation’s goals and implementation of its decisions so as to create a strong incentive to join and participate in the Federation, thus increasing the Federation’s intrinsic strength in various countries and enhancing its capabilities.

• Benefiting from the experience of the Islamic Development Bank in selecting the Board of Executive Directors by having permanent members, due to the weight of their participation, and rotating members according to their geographical distribution.

• Organizing visits to contractors’ federations and organizations in Islamic countries to ensure their effective and positive participation in the federation, as personal interviews to explain the importance of joining the federation and its advantages have a major impact in achieving the required persuasion.

• Granting preferential privileges and priority to contracting companies in the member states of the Federation, in projects proposed by governments, and projects financed by the Islamic Development Bank, and providing incentive support for members of the Federation to permanently participate in exhibitions and conferences organized by the Federation.

• Strengthening the Federation’s own financial resources by providing a new mechanism for financing activities, whether through government donations or contributions from Islamic banks, as well as approving a certain percentage allocated to the Federation in the event that a contracting company obtains a contract funded by the Islamic Development Bank.

• Full commitment to paying the fees charged to members, and organizing lectures, conferences, and exhibitions that will serve members, and at the same time contribute to achieving stable and continuous income sources for the Federation.

• Improving the federation’s structural and organizational structure, reviewing internal frameworks and regulations, and amending them to help develop effective plans and mechanisms to implement its goals.

• Synchronizing the holding of the Federation’s meetings with the meetings of the Islamic Development Bank to ensure effective attendance, provide the necessary support and assistance, and activate communications plans with corresponding Islamic institutions and bodies.

• The importance of media and awareness to clarify the basic purposes behind the establishment of the Contractors Federation in Islamic Countries and to highlight its core goals and ultimate goals.

• Coordination in making decisions issued by the Federation among member states and creating official frameworks to facilitate their implementation.

• Granting the Federation the privilege of issuing accreditation certificates for contracting companies qualified to work outside their countries, in order to motivate companies and countries to accelerate their joining the Federation.

• The commitment of all members of the Federation to actively participate in all meetings held by the Federation, and in the event that a member is unable to participate, he is allowed to delegate someone to represent him from those present, in order to ensure the participation of all.

• Establishing an independent administration within the Federation that provides all the data and various means of communication for the members of the Federation, so that it is responsible for conducting communications on a periodic basis and updating the members with everything new.

• Taking into account the harmonization of national economic legislation with the obligations contained in the objectives of the Federation, and providing a comprehensive view of the process of unifying legislation related to the contracting sector.

• Developing awareness of the importance of Islamic integration in the field of contracting, especially in the face of international conglomerates and companies that acquire major projects.

• Expanding the participation of Federation members in managing meetings, positions, and committees, delegating powers, and exchanging roles among members, so that each country is given the opportunity to assume one of the important positions in the Federation, and creating a collective work environment by providing broader opportunities for all members to participate in decision-making issued by the Federation, contributing suggestions and visions to instill a spirit of enthusiasm and activity and motivate participation in meetings.

• Developing the Federation’s website and creating pages on social media such as Facebook and Twitter, in addition to periodic bulletins, to exchange information and develop relationships with all members.

• Benefiting from the experience of the Saudi Contractors Authority in creating an information base for building and construction across all Islamic countries within the Federation’s headquarters, so that it includes all data and information about current and future projects within each country, laws and legislation related to building and construction, prices of raw materials and their availability, equipment and machinery, labor wages, and availability. Information on sources of supply, so that all members can refer to this information and give it to their national companies in their countries.