WIEF chairman Tun Musa Hitam said that during the last forum convened in Islamabad in November an agreement was signed for Bangladesh and Pakistan to provide the human capital while training would be taken on by Malaysia's Johor Corporation.

"Malaysia also voiced its need for nurses in view of the current shortage here and some of those trained would filter down to us," he said.

Emphasising that this move was still in its infancy, Musa said follow-up discussions between the countries involved would be held at the Third WIEF to be held in Kuala Lumpur in May.

"They still have to work out the costs while the United Arab Emirates has shown interest as takers of trained nurses," he said.

Musa said the idea of training and providing nurses to Muslim nations came from discussions the WIEF Businesswomen Network held to see how they could make a difference at the grassroots level.

"It was after such discussions that tackling health issues to improve the well-being of the family was something women could be directly involved in," he said.