Enhancing economic cooperation among muslim countries - the role of the OIC

The conference is being organized in conjunction with the 40-year anniversary celebration of the OIC and 25-year anniversary celebration of the International Islamic University Malaysia. This year also marks the twenty-fifthanniversary of the OIC Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation, which constitutes a major milestone in the efforts of the OIC in strengthening economic cooperation among its Member States. This conference is also taking place in an environment of a severe global crisis which broke out in the United States in the summer of 2007 as the subprime mortgage crisis, and after rapidly being transmitted to Europe, it started to adversely affect the emerging and developing economies. Some economists and institutions, including the International Monetary Fund (IMF), now compare the current crisis with the Great Depression of 1929. All these facts signify the importance of this gathering and increase the expectations about the outcome of this conference. In this connection, I am certain that this conference will generate essential inputs to our efforts towards securing higher economic growth and prosperity in Muslim countries