MOSCOW, May 17 (KUNA) -- The fourth international trade and finance forum (Kazansummit 2012) opened in Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan Republic, south Russia, on Thursday with representatives of 30 countries taking part, including Kuwait.

On the top of the dignitaries attending the opening ceremony were President of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov, State Council Chairman Farid Mukhametshin, Prime Minister Ildar Khalikov, Deputy Director-General of the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Khamid A. Opeloieru, and Tatarstan Investment Development Agency chief Linar Yakupov.

In his inaugural speech to the gathering, President Minnikhanov highlighted the significance of the Kazansummit as an annual platform for cooperation between Russia and the Islamic world.

"Meeting annually in Kazan has become a good tradition for many of those present in this hall. Experience shows that attending the summit is beneficial not for companies beginning to operate in Russia alone but for those who have an experience of investing on international capital markets as well," Tatar Information Agency (Tatar-inform) quoted him as saying.

"Nearly 100 investment projects worth about USD ten billion will be presented at the summit. The interest in our summit of the Russian regions has increased as well. Thirteen Russian regions are represented at this event," he went on.

"The financial influence of the Islamic world has been growing, to successfully compete with the Western financial system. Making a modest statement in the 90es, the Islamic world's financial system in 2011 grew, to make an industry worth USD 1.3 trillion, showing an increase of 150 percent over the previous five years.

The Islamic world is a keeper of huge natural resources that maintain stable trading, R. Minnikhanov noted. Nearly three fourths of the global oil stock is located inside the Muslim states, he said.

"History shows that Western capitalism has more than once lived through destruction of values, when the financial sector's own interests would be deemed higher than the interests of the society. Unlike it, the Islamic finance values, based on the Sharia laws, demonstrate their effectiveness and low risk. Islamic finance has a great future," Minnikhanov added.

Meanwhile, OIC Secretary-General Ekmeleddin ?hsanoglu sent a message to Minnikhanov to express wishes for the success of the fourth Kazansummit.

The gathering is scheduled to discuss the joint efforts by the OIC and the Russian Federation in creating investment-friendly atmosphere and modernizing the Islamic banking system.

It will also explore ways to promote human development, the roles of the central banks in promoting the Islamic Sharia-compliant financing tools, and the roles of Zakat (alms) houses and Awqaf (endowments) in socio-economic development. Led by undersecretary of the legislative branch of the National Assembly MP Ammar Al-Ajmi, the Kuwaiti delegation to the gathering includes MPs Dr. Hamad Al-Matar and Tawfiq Al-Wahib as well as Talal Al-Heban, an academic.