D-8 economic bloc aims to become more visible globally

By Merve Aydogan

ANTALYA, Turkiye (AA) - In a very first interview since his appointment, D-8 economic bloc's head said "visibility" is one of the priority areas of his eight-point agenda.

Speaking exclusively to Anadolu Agency, Isiaka Abdulqadir Imam talked about an eight-point agenda as part of a roadmap during his tenure, saying that "continuity" is also among those points.

"I want to maintain a continuum where my predecessor left," Imam said while noting that he aims to pursue "a number of implementations, a number of MoUs (memorandum of understanding) including the PTA (preferential trade agreement)."

Saying that he wants to make sure that such agreements and implementations are finalized "to a logical conclusion," the D-8 secretary-general also discussed the issue of visibility of the organization and noted that he wants to "make sure that the organization is quite visible" not only within the member states but also globally.

"The best way to do that is to make sure that the programs are well implemented," he said. If a program is implemented across the board, the organization becomes more visible, he added.

On further cooperation between the economic bloc and its external partners, Imam said the organization has very strong MoUs signed with the Islamic Development Bank and UN agencies.

"I want to make sure that the organization gets more visible" via such MoUs signed with the partners, Imam added.

Citing funding as "one of the critical areas" for the organization, the economic bloc's head said: "We need to look at additional sources of raising funds to move the organization forward."

He commented on a possible development bank for the organization, adding: "I want to look at the possibility of doing a feasibility study first."

- 'Turkiye plays an active role'

On the latest developments regarding D-8's decennial roadmap and Dhaka Declaration, Imam said they "have been able to achieve so far" what they call the "Project Support Fund."

"The Project Support Fund has been adopted and it's already operational," he said, adding: "It's one of the instruments which we use to fund feasibility and pre-feasibility studies" for companies taking part in the D-8.

At its 10th summit last April hosted by Bangladesh, the bloc adopted the D-8 Decennial Roadmap for 2020-2030 and the Dhaka Declaration 2021.

The members agreed to enhance trade cooperation and bring their domestic trade volumes to at least 10% of the organization’s total trade in the next decade.

The roadmap includes cooperation in the areas of trade, agriculture and food security, industrial cooperation and small-and-medium-sized enterprises, energy, transport and connectivity, tourism, and health.

During the first stage from 2020-2022, the bloc will focus on generating and preparing projects in primary cooperation areas such as trade, industry, tourism, agriculture and food security, energy, and transportation.

Imam also defined the "geographical distribution of the member states" as one of the challenges for the economic bloc.

Recalling that all eight member states are not located in the same region, the D-8 head said such a challenge is not unique to the bloc, and added: "It is a challenge, but it doesn't mean it's something blocking us towards our progress."

"We've been able to establish a number of legal frameworks in the first stage of the PTA. It is about to be completed and signed. Almost all member states have signed and funded (the PTA)," he said, noting that it is "an achievement."

Despite the organization's current lack of visibility and existing challenges, Imam said the D-8 "has done reasonably well."

He further noted that "a market of $1.1 billion (in trade volume) is a very, very promising future" by the time the PTA is fully implemented.

On Turkiye's role in the bloc, Imam said the "concept of D-8 itself originated, it came up from far back as 1996," noting that Turkiye "has played a very, very critical role" in the organization, and continues to do so.

Stressing that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is "very passionate about the organization," and that Turkiye has a "very strong role to play," Imam defined Turkiye as a "very strong, active partner."

He also added that Turkiye was "very instrumental" in the drafting of the decennial roadmap.

Regarding the recently concluded Antalya Diplomacy Forum, Imam said the forum is "one of the very unique instruments in promoting multilateral diplomacy" and "one of its kind."

The three-day high-level Antalya Diplomacy Forum in the Mediterranean resort city of Antalya ended on Sunday. The event brought together participants from 75 countries, including 17 heads of state, 80 government ministers, and 39 representatives of international organizations.

Anadolu Agency was the event's global communication partner.