OIC businesses want more intra-Islamic trade

OIC businesses want more intra-Islamic trade

JAKARTA (JP): The Islamic private sector meeting in Bandung,
West Java, and Jakarta is expected to produce a declaration on
Wednesday calling for concerted efforts to enhance trade and
investment flows between Islamic countries.

The draft declaration, named the Bandung Declaration, called
on all Islamic countries in the Organization of Islamic Countries
(OIC) to further liberalize their economy and promote intra-
Islamic trade.

"The private sector representatives... call upon all OIC
countries to make efforts to reduce levels of tariffs and other
barriers... and to expedite the implementation of the
preferential trade system among the OIC countries," the draft
declaration read.

Representatives of the private sector from OIC countries held
a meeting in Bandung from Oct. 17 to Oct. 19, which will carry on
here from today until Wednesday. This meeting is the third after
previous meetings in Turkey in October 1994 and Egypt in October
1995.

The third meeting of the organization is to coincide with the
14th conference of the Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Industry,
which was opened by President Soeharto in Bandung on Oct. 17.

To promote trade among OIC countries, the organization called
on member countries to give priority to extending export credits
to Islamic exporters without credit ceilings, to encourage intra-
Islamic trade.

They also called on financial institutions and banks in OIC
countries to extend refinancing facilities by giving preferential
discounting rates for export bills.

"The private sector representatives... call for the full
operation of the Export Credit Insurance and Investment Guarantee
Scheme at the Islamic Development Bank with priority at the
initial stage to be given to the setting up of an export
refinancing mechanism," it said.

Meanwhile, the vice-president of the Islamic Development Bank
Fuad Abdullah Al-Omar said at the conference that the bank
remains committed to providing trade financing schemes for the
private sector.

He further underlined that, in the face of challenges due to
the World Trade Organization agreements, OIC member countries
should take the necessary initiatives to derive maximum benefit
from the agreements.

He said a committee comprised of the Islamic Development Bank,
the Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Industry and other relevant
OIC institutions would be useful. It could study the possibility
of coordinating the activities of the existing national or
regional funds and banks to help develop the requisite financial
mechanism to foster intra-Islamic trade, he said.

In addition to trade, the document called for greater
investment flows among OIC member countries through the
establishment of joint venture projects.

It also called for the creation of employment opportunities
through investment, the exchange of raw materials, technology,
know-how, equity participation and marketing skills.

"The private sector representatives regard the cooperation
among Islamic countries in the field of economic activities as
important in achieving common interests," the statement read.
(rid)