ISLAMABAD: A meeting of the D-8 member commission began in Islamabad on Tuesday with Pakistan commissioner in the organization Tanvir Akhtar in the chair.
The representatives from the members of eight developing countries are attending the meeting. The Secretary General of the Organization Syed Muhammad Ali Mousavi is also attending the meeting.
The meeting will finalize agenda for the 16th Session of the D-8 Council of Ministers to be held on Thursday in Islamabad.
The D-8 ministers will adopt the proposals to strengthen the D-8 organization by implementing its key agreements‚ particularly the Preferential Trade Agreement‚ and to enhance the role of private sector in intra-D-8 cooperation.
The meeting of D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation is taking place in Islamabad at a time when the government is pushing ahead with its economic reforms agenda that envisages increased business and commercial linkages with other countries.
The Developing 8 (D-8 or Developing Eight) was officially founded on June 15, 1997, for the promotion of cooperation on development. The organization consists of Iran, Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan and Turkey.
The D-8 objectives are to improve the position of member states in the global economy, diversify and create new opportunities in trade relations, enhance participation in decision-making at international level, and improve standards of living in the member states.
The group, with a population of one billion people, has a combined market value of one trillion dollars. The alliance is determined to boost its trade volume to USD 500 billion by 2018.
