Turkey seeks trade in local currencies within D-8: Erdoğan

ISTANBUL

Turkey is looking to conduct trade within the Developing-Eight (D8) group of countries in local currencies, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said at the D-8 Summit in Istanbul on Oct. 20.

“If we can pave the way for using our national currencies in trade between our countries, we will make a revolution in the history of the D-8. There is no need to dissolve our economies under the pressure of exchange rates,” Erdoğan said, stressing the importance of boosting economic steps within the organization.

The D-8 was founded in 1997 as a primarily economic alliance between eight mostly Muslim-majority countries by former Turkish Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan. Along with Turkey, the other members are Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria and Pakistan.

Turkey is hosting the summit this year, after taking over term leadership of the D-8 from Pakistan.

The event, marking 20 years of the eight-country alliance, is being held under the theme “Expanding Opportunities through Cooperation.”

Among the participants are the Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Iranian First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri and Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla.

Erdoğan also urged member states to bring together their central banks to establish a clearing house.

“We all have to embrace the D-8 and make efforts to increase its efficiency, productivity and strength,” he said.

“We have the potential for wide-ranging cooperation in many fields, from good agricultural practices to clean energy, transportation to environment and education,” he said, while adding that new members could be added to the organization.

“In a world where everything changes, it is never acceptable for the D-8 to remain unchanged,” Erdoğan said.

At present, the organization has a combined GDP of $3.7 trillion and includes more than one billion people - around 15 percent of the world’s population. Two of its members - Turkey and Indonesia - are among the group of the world’s 20 biggest economies.

Islamic Development Bank, D-8 ink cooperation deal

The Islamic Development Bank announced on Oct. 20 that it signed a memorandum of understanding with the D-8 organization to enhance development efforts as well as joint expertise, knowledge and resources for the socio-economic development of the eight developing countries.

The “Islamic Development Bank Group will work with the Developing-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation to promote sustained economic growth in the member states of the D-8,” the bank said in a written statement.

Signed during the D-8 Summit in Istanbul, the agreement foresees possible cooperation in the identification and implementation of joint programs and projects in the fields of transportation, trade, investment, Islamic finance, energy, industry, small and medium-sized enterprises, agriculture, food security, tourism, science, education and establishment of data banks.

It also envisages the exchange of knowledge and information on commercial issues.

The Islamic Development Bank will also consider the allocation of scholarships for students from D-8 states.