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Jakarta ( Berita ) : Indonesia and Malaysia have agreed to promotethe World Islamic Economic Forum (WIEF) for the progress ofMoslems.
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi agreed at a meeting here on Monday to continue promoting the WIEF which has now become anofficial annual forum meeting of Islamic countries.
“President Yudhoyono and Prime Minister Badawi alike agreed this process is important to improve cooperation among Islamic communities and build a bridge to connect the Islamic and non-Islamic worlds in the midst of the current globalization,” Indonesian presidential spokesman Dino Pati Djalal said.
The fifth WIEF meeting opened here on Monday was attended by several heads of state/government including the Uni Arab Emirate crown prince, the deputy prime minister of Qatar, Abdullah Bin Hamad Al Attiyah, Morocco prime minister Abbas El Fassi, Malaysian prime minister Abdullah Badawi, Yaman’s president Ali Abdullah Saleh and Somali president Sheikh Sharif Ahmed.
The theme of the meeting that would last for three days until March 3 was “Food and Energy Resilience, Curbing the Impact of Global Financial Crisis.”
The WIEF was first launched in 2005 by among others Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Malaysian Prime Minister Badawi and Pakistanie Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz as a means for dialogue for business cooperation between Moslem and non-Moslem businessmen to promote communications to solve economic problems.
Besides expressing their committment to advancing the WIEF, Dino said, the two leaders also discussed the annual Indonesia-Malaysia consultation meeting plan in the middle of this month.
“The planned meeting will discuss various aspects of bilateral relations between the two countries. It would also hear a report from the Eminent Persons’ Group set up by the two leaders,” he said. Dino said President Yudhoyono and Prime Minister Badawi also discussed the Asean summit that was just concluded in Hua Hin, Thailand.
The two leaders hoped the Chiangmai Initiative worth US$120 billioncould immediately be realized after the Asean + 3 financial minisers’ meeting in Bangkok in April. President Yudhoyono received Prime Minister Abbas El Fassi of Morocco who also attended the WIEF, before meeting with prime minister Badawi.
Dino said President Yudhoyono and Prime Minister Abbas agreed to increase the volume of trade between the two countries which now still stood at US$90 million in value although its growth rate reached 25 percent.
He said Indonesia and Morocco also agreed to make the relations between the two countries closer in view of the fact that the two countries had moderate Moslem population who wished to implement democracy. ( ant )