UPDATE 1-Investments being finalized for Syria, Saudi finance minister says

(Adds details and quotes from Al-Jadaan and Georgieva, paragraphs 3-5 and 7-9) WASHINGTON, Oct 17 (Reuters) – Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan on Friday said the international community stood with Syria, and many investments were being finalized for the country after the overthrow of longtime President Bashar al-Assad last December. Al-Jadaan, who chairs the International Monetary Fund's steering committee, told reporters it was the duty of the international community to provide support for Syria after decades of isolation. "We stand with Syria. We believe that they really mean business, and they are genuine in their efforts to actually do the right thing for their people," said Al-Jadaan, who was in Washington for the IMF and World Bank annual meetings this week. The removal of sanctions by the United States and the European Union has helped pave the way for private sector investments, he said. "And I can tell, a lot of investments are now going in that direction," he said. "From firsthand knowledge, I know that a lot of investments are actually being finalized." IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said the IMF was working closely with Syrian authorities and the World Bank to help build institutions such as a central bank that could anchor development and growth. "We now have a full-fledged engagement with Syria, and an IMF team has already been in Damascus on the issue of strengthening the capacity of the central bank to provide the necessary functions and to be an anchor of stability," she said. An IMF staff team visited Syria in June for the first time since 2009 to assess its economic and financial conditions . Georgieva said Syria's finance minister had invited her to visit the country. She said she would be happy to travel there once the "institutional building" now under way had been achieved. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal and David Lawder; Editing by Paul Simao and Cynthia Osterman)

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