08 November 2009
Jeddah -- The Secretary General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, has called on Muslim countries to pursue a partnership for economic progress with more vigor in their upcoming phase of development.
He affirmed that development is now at the center of the Organization's objectives of enhancing Islamic solidarity.
The Secretary General made these remarks in a speech at the opening ceremony of the 25th Session of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation of the OIC (COMCEC) in Istanbul yesterday.
Turkey"s President Dr. Abdullah Gul, who opened the 25th Session of COMCEC, said that member countries should take this opportunity to make best use of COMCEC as a platform which has proved its success.
Enumerating the major successes of COMCEC in the past 25 years, the Turkish President said the Muslim countries ought to make COMCEC more efficient and strong in the period ahead by strengthening its corporate structure and drafting a viable vision document.
He added that it was also crucial for member countries to demonstrate a stronger political will and employ a more effective follow up.
The Session celebrates the 25th anniversary of the creation of the standing committee entrusted with the task of addressing economic and commercial cooperation among OIC member states. The Session also coincides with the OIC celebrating its 40th anniversary.
COMCEC became operational at the 4th Islamic Summit in 1984. "As the responsible organ for promoting economic and commercial cooperation among OIC member states, COMCEC has proven to be a very effective tool in strengthening economic and trade ties among the member states, " said Prof. Ihsanoglu.
One of its important achievements is the drawing up of the 'Framework Agreement on Trade Preferential System', which entered into force in the autumn of 2002, which produced "The Protocol on the Preferential Tariff Scheme for TPS-OIC" (PRETAS). Prof. Ihsanoglu announced that PRETAS is entering into force with the tenth ratification by the People Republic of Bangladesh two days ago, according to an OIC Press Release issued in Jeddah Saturday evening.
The landmark adoption by the Third Extraordinary Islamic Summit in Makkah of the OIC Ten-Year Program of Action (TYPOA) gave the requisite approval to the new vision and momentum elaborated for more active economic cooperation among the OIC member states. The economic thrusts of the Program are elimination of trade barriers, boosting of intra-OIC trade, alleviation of poverty, a Private-Sector-led development and establishing a free trade area among the member states.
"I am pleased to note that all these efforts on the part of the OIC and its several organs have started to bear fruit," said the Secretary General.
Positive developments that have taken place include the rise of intra-OIC trade from 14.5% in 2004 to 16.6% in 2008 and OIC countries share of world GDP increased from 6.1% in 2007 to 7.3% in 2008.
Other projects have also been initiated to fast-track this process including the OIC Five-Year Action Plan on Cotton (2007-2011); the Framework for Development and Cooperation in the Domain of Tourism between Member States; the OIC Dakar-Port Sudan Railway project as well as rapid implementation of such crucial programs as poverty alleviation, micro-finance, food security and women empowerment, particularly in the Least Developed Member States, and the five-year Special Program for the Development of Africa (2008-2012).
He urged all distinguished delegates to freely discuss the important issue of economic partnership. "The world is reshaping itself into larger economic communities based on common interests and shared values. Ours is an organization that can achieve greater successes if we unlock the innate energies of our citizens in the direction of productive ventures," stressed Ihsanoglu.
Jeddah -- The Secretary General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, has called on Muslim countries to pursue a partnership for economic progress with more vigor in their upcoming phase of development.
He affirmed that development is now at the center of the Organization's objectives of enhancing Islamic solidarity.
The Secretary General made these remarks in a speech at the opening ceremony of the 25th Session of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation of the OIC (COMCEC) in Istanbul yesterday.
Turkey"s President Dr. Abdullah Gul, who opened the 25th Session of COMCEC, said that member countries should take this opportunity to make best use of COMCEC as a platform which has proved its success.
Enumerating the major successes of COMCEC in the past 25 years, the Turkish President said the Muslim countries ought to make COMCEC more efficient and strong in the period ahead by strengthening its corporate structure and drafting a viable vision document.
He added that it was also crucial for member countries to demonstrate a stronger political will and employ a more effective follow up.
The Session celebrates the 25th anniversary of the creation of the standing committee entrusted with the task of addressing economic and commercial cooperation among OIC member states. The Session also coincides with the OIC celebrating its 40th anniversary.
COMCEC became operational at the 4th Islamic Summit in 1984. "As the responsible organ for promoting economic and commercial cooperation among OIC member states, COMCEC has proven to be a very effective tool in strengthening economic and trade ties among the member states, " said Prof. Ihsanoglu.
One of its important achievements is the drawing up of the 'Framework Agreement on Trade Preferential System', which entered into force in the autumn of 2002, which produced "The Protocol on the Preferential Tariff Scheme for TPS-OIC" (PRETAS). Prof. Ihsanoglu announced that PRETAS is entering into force with the tenth ratification by the People Republic of Bangladesh two days ago, according to an OIC Press Release issued in Jeddah Saturday evening.
The landmark adoption by the Third Extraordinary Islamic Summit in Makkah of the OIC Ten-Year Program of Action (TYPOA) gave the requisite approval to the new vision and momentum elaborated for more active economic cooperation among the OIC member states. The economic thrusts of the Program are elimination of trade barriers, boosting of intra-OIC trade, alleviation of poverty, a Private-Sector-led development and establishing a free trade area among the member states.
"I am pleased to note that all these efforts on the part of the OIC and its several organs have started to bear fruit," said the Secretary General.
Positive developments that have taken place include the rise of intra-OIC trade from 14.5% in 2004 to 16.6% in 2008 and OIC countries share of world GDP increased from 6.1% in 2007 to 7.3% in 2008.
Other projects have also been initiated to fast-track this process including the OIC Five-Year Action Plan on Cotton (2007-2011); the Framework for Development and Cooperation in the Domain of Tourism between Member States; the OIC Dakar-Port Sudan Railway project as well as rapid implementation of such crucial programs as poverty alleviation, micro-finance, food security and women empowerment, particularly in the Least Developed Member States, and the five-year Special Program for the Development of Africa (2008-2012).
He urged all distinguished delegates to freely discuss the important issue of economic partnership. "The world is reshaping itself into larger economic communities based on common interests and shared values. Ours is an organization that can achieve greater successes if we unlock the innate energies of our citizens in the direction of productive ventures," stressed Ihsanoglu.
© Saudi Press Agency 2009
