WIEF regional forum meet in Dhaka Nov 3-5
Pvt sector's lead role stressed in integrating economies of Muslim-majority nations
Star Business Report
The private sector must take the lead in integrating economies among the region's Muslim-majority nations who are part of the World Islamic Economic Forum (WIEF), which is due to hold its first regional meeting in Dhaka on November 3-5.The WIEF regional forum would seek to revive the South East Asian Cooperation (Seaco) initiative with an eye to eventually create a free trade area (FTA) between the WIEF countries. The regional grouping comprises Bangladesh, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Maldives, with a combined GDP of $155.5 billion and an average annual growth rate of 5 per cent. "The private sector has to motivate, be active and maintain the network among regional businesses for the idea of integration to work," said Tun Musa Hitam, chairman of the WIEF Foundation and former deputy prime minister of Malaysia, at a press conference in Dhaka yesterday. He said since governments, especially of the developed world, have failed to broker a fair trade deal, it would be the private sector that would have to take quick and effective action to integrate the regional markets without digressing to rhetoric or fanfare. Asked whether the FTA is a realistic goal, the former Malaysian deputy premier said this would be first and small step to realise the initial dream of creating a Free Trade Area among the OIC (Organisation of Islamic Conference) countries. Hitam also met Chief Adviser (CA) Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed yesterday to invite him to attend the two-day conference in November, which the CA accepted and extended Bangladesh's full support to the conference. Alongside Fakhruddin, other possible speakers at the November conference would be Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla, Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, President of Islamic Development Bank Ahmed Mohamed Ali and Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus. Yesterday's press conference was attended by Salahuddin Kasem Khan, convener of the first regional WIEF forum organising committee, and the ambassadors of Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. "An OIC common market is not a dream, it is certainly possible. Our efforts starts here in Dhaka," Hitam said. The WIEF was created in 2005 in order to boost trade and economic cooperation among the OIC countries, which currently accounts for 2-3 percent of the global average.
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Tun Musa Hitam, chairman of World Islamic Economic Forum (WIEF) Foundation and former deputy prime minister of Malaysia, speaks at a press conference in Dhaka yesterday. PHOTO: STAR |
