Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, October 20, 2011—IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is providing financial risk-management training to institutions in Azerbaijan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, helping them reduce their risk of losses.

As part of the first round of the Risk Certification Program implementation, IFC conducted review classes on the fundamentals of financial risk on October 17-19 in Bishkek. The three-day classes focus on risk-management methodologies, governance structures for the management of risk in financial institutions, and an overview of globally accepted standards and concepts in these areas.

The program is organized in partnership with the Global Association of Risk Professionals, a globally recognized leader in financial-risk testing and certification programs, and educational and training activities.

Over 20 participants from the National Bank of the Kyrgyz Republic, commercial banks, and microfinance organizations joined the classes, as well as local training partners who will further train staff of local banks and financial institutions during the second phase of the program. The review classes were held in Azerbaijan in September, will be provided in Tajikistan in late October, and in Uzbekistan in November.

“One of the key pitfalls to banking and microfinance is financial risk,” said Bektash Uzenov, Head of the Risk Management Department at UniCredit Bank. ”The banks are looking for good risk-management practices and are trying to test various methods. IFC’s Risk Certification Program, the first in the region, provides a unique opportunity to improve my knowledge and understanding of risk management from an international perspective.”

This training initiative is part of the IFC Azerbaijan-Central Asia Financial Markets Infrastructure Advisory Services Project, and the IFC Financial Markets Crisis Management Project, which are funded by Austria, Finland, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.