By NNN-APP,
Kuala Lumpur : Pakistani Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Tuesday called for the promotion of intra-trade and increased economic cooperation among the eight developing Muslim nations.
“It is in trade and not in aid that the future of D-8 lies,” Gilani said in his address to the 6th D-8 Summit which was opened by Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi here.
Gilani expressed Pakistan’s commitment to ensuring success of D-8 summit.
The D-8 comprises Pakistan, Malaysia, Iran, Turkey, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Egypt and Nigeria.
Indonesian President Dr. Susilo Bambang handed over the group’s presidency to host Malaysia for two years at the opening session of the summit which is being attended by five Head of Governments and states of the member countries including Pakistan, Malaysia, Iran, Indonesia and Bangladesh, with Turkey, Egypt and Nigeria being represented by their ministers.
Gilani said the D-8 can become a model of progress, development, cooperation and partnership.
“ This organization has a great potential with more than 930 million people and vast natural resources,” he said, adding Pakistan’s trade with D-8 countries accounts for 8.14 percent of its overall trade, which is the highest as compared to the trade of D-8 states with members of the organization.
He said Pakistan would like the D-8 to rapidly grow and become a vibrant and effective organization.
There was a need to provide requisite human and financial resources to the D-8 Secretariat for achieving success to realize its objectives.
Gilani commended the signing of agreements including Preferential Trade Agreement, Mutual Assistance in Customs Matters and the Simplification of Visa Procedures for Businessmen of the Member States as “steps in right direction.”
He said an early implementation of these agreements will give impetus to promotion of intra D-8 trade, which, at present is only US $ 60.5 billion.
He said the D-8 had made steady progress during the last 11 years, adding,the progress achieved so far did not reflect true potential of the D-8 countries.
“We need to look into challenges, analyse them and covert them into opportunities to the advantage and betterment of our people”, he said, adding there was a need to build knowledge based societies, promote human resource development, skill development, education and research, and learn from each other’s experiences and good practices.
On the D-8 Roadmap, Gilani suggested that “we should prioritize areas of cooperation and focus on some selected projects with timelines and verifiable indicators for effective monitoring and evaluation. “
Pakistan has a liberalized market oriented economy with abundant opportunities for businessmen and investors.
“We have established special economic zones with special incentives for foreign companies to invest in Pakistan.”
The foreign investors in Pakistan, he said,were free to repatriate their profits abroad.
He said Pakistan is strategically located at the confluence of South Asia, Central Asia and Southwest Asia, with immense human and natural capital. It can serve as an energy and trade corridor for the entire region.
“The wealth of our human and material resources is available to our brothers in the D-8 for enhancing mutually beneficial cooperation and integration of our fast growing economies.”
Describing peace and stability as indispensable for socio-economic progress, he said Pakistan and India had made positive progress in their dialogue in during last many years.
“We are seeking peaceful resolution of our all outstanding issues, including the core issue of Jammu and Kashmir in accordance with the aspirations of the Kashmiri people,” he said.