As the founding members of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank gather for their first annual meeting of the Board of Governors, the United Arab Emirates is proud to count itself among them, because we believe in the bank's core mission to develop Asia's economy and enhance the trade connectivity between Asia and the rest of the world.

The AIIB was established in 2015 with the primary aim of channeling strategic investments into Asian economies' energy, transportation and logistical infrastructure to strengthen their economies and enhance their capacity to trade with one another. The bank will also focus on improving basic services, including water and sanitation, with the aim of advancing economic progress, particularly in rural areas, for the greatest number of people in the shortest possible time.

The UAE is one of 57 initial members that applaud China's foresight in establishing this important addition to the multilateral community - the first such lending institution in which developing nations will have majority voting rights, so that they can directly influence its policies, culture and objectives. The AIIB will work alongside other multilateral banks to achieve key development goals. Despite significant progress in recent years, nearly 1.5 billion people in Asia still lack adequate sanitation, some 260 million have no access to clean water and half a billion lack electricity.