By KUNA,
Kuwait : The Meeting of Chairmen and Presidents of Islamic Chamber of Commerce with Business Leaders, held under the auspices of the Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) on Monday, will constitute a new phase of cooperation between commerce chambers in Muslim states based on realistic standards.
The meeting, which will take place at Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry on the sidelines of the Fourth World Islamic Economic Forum (WIEF) hosted by Kuwait, will bring together prominent businesspeople from the Muslim world, representing the Islamic economic powers.
The ICCI, which groups chambers of commerce of Islamic countries, is headed by the Saudi businessman Saleh Kamal, and had recently declared its 10-year program and the mechanism it aims to employ to achieve goals of governments, chambers, and businessmen, namely the establishment of an Islamic construction bank with a capital of USD one billion.
This bank is expected to assist Islamic banks and financial institutions, as well as governments and individuals in exploring direct investment opportunities, with the option of raising its capital to USD 100 billion in the future.
As for the bank’s activities, they include the establishment of an international Zakat (alms) authority aimed at strengthening solidarity among Muslims of the 57 member states of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), as well as raising inter-Islamic investments and their gross domestic product (GDP).
It also aims to establish free trade zones in a number of OIC states, as well as an employment company to reduce dependency on workforce from non-Muslim states.
Moreover, the Union of Businesspeople, also affiliated with the ICCI, aims to establish an umbrella under which businessmen and the private sector in Muslim countries could come together.
It also encourages investment and coordination among Muslim states and the employment of Muslim youth to cut down unemployment.
Up to now, 17 commerce chambers from members of the OIC signed memorandums of understanding for the activation of the union’s goals, which include the facilitation of the movement of businessmen among the OIC states so that they may play a role in the development of the members.
It also holds seminars and conferences for the exchange of expertise among those involved in the business sector.
The Fourth WIEF will kick off tomorrow under the auspices of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.