Minister of Trade and Investment: Trade Exchange Between Members of SMIIC Increased by 156% in Ten Years

تاريخ 05 Nov 2018

​In Sponsorship of the General Assembly of SMIIC

Minister of Trade and Investment: trade exchange between members of SMIIC increased by 156% in ten years


 

Makkah - Media Center

 

      The Minister of Trade and Investment, Dr. Majid bin Abdullah Al-Kasabi, revealed that the value of trade exchanges (exports and imports) between member countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has increased significantly since the Organization's implementation of the ten-year work (2005-2015), which moved from $271.45 billion in 2005 to $694.23 billion in 2015, with an increase of 156%.

      His Excellency said in a speech presented at the opening session of the General Assembly of the Standards and Metrology Institute for the Islamic Countries (SMIIC): "The directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince always emphasize the need to support and strengthen cooperation and joint Islamic action in various fields, to achieve economic growth and to provide the necessary requirements to strengthen unity and rapprochement among Islamic nations. This was reflected in the fact that the Arab and Islamic depth came as one of the pillars of the Kingdom's Vision 2030".

      The Minister of Trade pointed out that the consolidation of Islamic cooperation is a fundamental pillar of the Saudi Kingdom since its foundation. This was one of the great concerns that His Majesty King Faisal bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud, may God have mercy on him, felt due to his deep belief that the strength of this nation lays in its unity and the revival of solidarity and integration among Islamic peoples. This concern has resulted in the idea of establishing OIC.

      For his part, Dr. Saad bin Othman Al-Kasabi, Chairman of SMIIC, said: "Standards are one of the most important pillars for achieving economic and industrial development in all countries and are one of the effective means to push the economies of our Islamic countries to further growth and development. In addition, they are considered a main pillar of the national quality infrastructure system, which is the main potential for achieving the desired economic growth".

      He added, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which chairs the organization's Board of Directors during this period, is determined to build bridges with all member countries of the organization and to cooperate and integrate in the field of standardizations and specifications for the good and development of Islamic countries and societies and the world at large.

      The opening session was initiated with the speech of the Secretary-General of OIC, Dr. Yousuf bin Ahmed Al-Othaimeen, delivered on his behalf by the Ambassador Hamid Obelero, Assistant Secretary-General for Economic Affairs, in which he stressed that Makkah is the best place to study and discuss the concepts of arbitration and to promote standards related to Halal food.

      Furthermore, he pointed out that the activities of SMIIC have largely complemented many of the OIC's procedures and policies on trade finance, promotion and facilitation. At the same time, the organization seeks to support the elimination of quantitative and qualitative barriers to intra-trade, which is being promoted within the framework of the trade preferences system of the Organization, through the Institute's work in the fields of standards and specifications, in particular the development of acceptable Halal food standards among State Members.

      The Director-General of the Arab Industrial Development and Mining Organization (AIDMO) Adel Al-Saqr, emphasized the pivotal role of standards in promoting cooperation and trade between countries, noting that AIDMO shares with the Institute and other national standardization bodies the interest in promoting standardization activities in support of development efforts by raising the quality of products and improving their access to regional and international markets.

      The opening session resumed with a speech presented by the Secretary-General of GCC Standardization Organization (GSO), Saud Al-Khusaibi, during which he stressed the importance of standardization unity and the removal of technical barriers to trade in order to contribute to the development of trade between members of Islamic countries of OIC.

      Secretary-General of the International Islamic Fiqh Academy (IIFA) Dr. Abdulsalam Al-Abadi highlighted the integration of the work of IIFA and SMIIC, pointing out that there are many issues that were referred to IIFA by SMIIC to discuss their compatibility with the foundations and legal evidence.

      The meetings of the Board of Directors of the Institute of SMIIC started on Sunday with a large attendance of delegates from more than 34 countries of the Islamic world. The meetings discussed a number of issues related to cooperation and integration in the fields of standards and specifications in Islamic countries. this was during the attendance of SMIIC's board of directors' meeting No. (17) and the general assembly meeting No.(13).


Last modified 29 Dec 2019
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