TOBB seeks to teach Muslim countries how to boost trade

Welcoming to Ankara trade and industry chamber officials from 21 Muslim countries, from Uganda to Saudi Arabia, the Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges (TOBB) this week will seek to teach these countries how to boost trade and production. The four-day education program, meant to improve the capacity and effectiveness of chambers in Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) member countries, is an initiative of TOBB, the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), and Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC). The Turkish International Cooperation and Development Agency (TIKA) also supports the event. TOBB Chair M. Rifat Hisarciklioglu and ICCI Chair Sheikh Saleh Kamel are attending the event's opening session today. Hisarciklioglu, who is also the vice chairman of both the ICCI and Eurochambers, said Muslim countries should work to capture their share of the globalized world, and added: "The wage gap between OIC member countries is enormous. This doesn't befit us. Our neighbors should also prosper."