The Islamic Development Bank (IDB), an economic development organization based in Saudi Arabia with 56 member countries, has partnered with Dutch asset manager Robeco to launch a US$600 million private equity fund to invest in food and agriculture projects in Muslim nations. The fund, which will be managed by a joint venture between IDB affiliate Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) and Robeco, will make sharia-compliant growth capital investments with the goal of promoting food security, job creation, technology transfer and poverty alleviation.