Gul calls for more cooperation to fight poverty in muslim world

The 24th Monitoring Committee Meeting of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation (COMCEC) under the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) umbrella began yesterday in Antalya. In a message sent to the meeting, President Abdullah Gul said that many Muslim countries still suffer from underdevelopment, and stressed the importance of the Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development under the Islamic Development Bank to boost cooperation among Islamic countries to overcome poverty and underdevelopment. The meeting aims to improve and liberalize trade relations among Islamic countries. Speaking to the meeting, OIC Secretary General and Turkish scholar Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu also underlined how underdevelopment and other poverty-related problems hurt many Muslim countries and called on OIC members to contribute generously to the solidarity fund. Ihsanoglu also stressed that the rising threat of a global food crisis threatens efforts to overcome poverty in poor Muslim countries. Ihsanoglu also urged the creation of synergy among member states which have advantages in diverse areas. Also speaking at the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Nazim Ekren said that OIC member states should immediately take necessary measures against rising food and commodity prices. Saying that trade among Muslim countries has risen markedly in recent years, Ekren also called on the member states to sign a Preferential Trade Agreement, saying they all would benefit from it.