JEDDAH: The secretary-general of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Hissein Brahim Taha, says that the organization has set a target of achieving 25 percent intra-OIC trade among member states in the next three years.

Taha said that trade financing, business insurance operations and support for private sector activities had reached a cumulative amount of $140 billion since the inception of the International Islamic Trade Finance Corp., the Islamic Corporation for Insurance of Investments and Export Credit, and the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector.

This was disclosed in a statement by the secretary-general, delivered on his behalf by the assistant secretary-general for economic affairs, Ahmad Kawesa Sengendo, during the opening ceremony of the 17th OIC Trade Fair in Dakar, Senegal.

“It is my hope and prayer that this trade fair will contribute effectively toward moving intra-OIC trade from 18 percent seen in 2021 to 25 percent by 2025,” Taha said.

“I urge all our trade promotion agencies to continue to collaborate with the entire OIC family toward the realization of this achievable target,” he said.

Taha said that the staging of the biennial general trade fair and regular convening of specialized trade fairs represented an important instrument for the promotion of trade and services among the OIC member states. This was even more important given the disruptions to trade caused by the COVID 19 pandemic, and the global food crises caused by a range of challenges.

He said that the tourism sector represented effective and inclusive cooperation in expansion of intra-OIC trade. Taha called on all member states to actively participate at the 11th Islamic Conference of Tourism Ministers in Baku, Azerbaijan, from June 27 to June 29.