Organisation of Islamic Cooperation
The Collective Voice of The Muslim World
Date: 09/07/2007
(Dubai, 9-11 June 2007) Bismillahi Arrahmani Arrahim {In the Name of Allah, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful} Excellency, Chairman, the Executive Committee of OISA. Excellency, Secretary General of the Organization of the Islamic Shipowners Association, Honourable Delegates, Distinguished Guests, Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wabarakatuh. I would like to seize this opportunity to express my profound gratitude and deep appreciation to His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nuhayyan, President of the United Arab Emirates, and to His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai, as well as to the government and to the people of the United Arab Emirates for hosting for the second time the meetings of the Executive Committee and the General Assembly of OISA in this beautiful city of Dubai. I am pleased to express my sincere congratulations to Dr. Abdullatif Abdullah Sultan, Secretary General of the Organization of the Islamic Shipowners Association, for his dedication to the service of this Organization. I am thankful to the Chairman of the Executive Committee, its members and members of OISA, for their efforts to make this important arm of OIC as an effective instrument of intra-OIC economic and commercial cooperation. It is notable that the 3rd Extraordinary Summit held in Makkah Al-Mukarramah in December 2005, urged Member States to strengthen their economic and commercial cooperation and accelerate their developments with a view to combat poverty and meet the challenges of globalization. The Makkah Summit highlighted the necessity of developing exchanges among the Member States and decided to push up intra-OIC trade from 14% in 2005 to 20% by 2015. The OIC Ten-Year Programme of Action adopted by the Third Extraordinary Summit is a turning point in the history of OIC. This Programme provides an opportunity to the Islamic world to address the challenges of this millennium. I am sure that OISA will contribute effectively to the implementation of this important Programme and will benefit from this its provisions. I call on all OIC institutions to work in harmony and to support each other so that we can achieve our common goals. To attain our main objectives, the OIC General Secretariat convenes an annual coordination meeting of all OIC institutions with a view of defining ways and means to ensure the effective implementation of the OIC Ten-Year Programme of Action. I urged all OIC institutions to exert more efforts in the implementation of the OIC Ten-Year Programme of Action. I commend the initiative taken by the OISA, for establishing Bakkah Shipping Company (BASCO). Undoubtedly, it will contribute to the development of maritime transport and trade among the Member States. I call upon the Member States and OIC Institutions to extend their support to the Bakkah Shipping Company. I wish to express my thanks to the Custodian of the Two Holly Mosques and his Government for the support to OISA and Bakka Shipping Company. I also would like to express my gratitude to the Government of the United Arab Emirates for hosting the operations office of the Bakkah Shipping Company (BASCO) in Dubai, and providing all necessary facilities. The establishment of the Islamic Protection and Indemnity (P&I) Club is also an other landmark development. I again call upon the Member States and their maritime companies to move fast to register their ships with this Club. In this regard, I would like to express my thanks to the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran for extending its generous support to the Islamic P&I Club. In pursuance of its policy which aims at the promotion of the private sector, the OIC is extending its full support to the Organization of the Islamic Shipowners Association so that it may meet its objectives. I hope that further progress will be made in respect of Bakkah Shipping Company and the Islamic P&I Club, which, I am confident, will be competitive enough to attract shipping business. I congratulate the OISA for the establishment of the Cooperative Information System, which, I am sure, will tremendously contribute to strengthen shipping business among the Member States. I would like to assure you that the OIC General Secretariat will spare no effort to extend all its possible support to OISA so that it could flourish and discharge its duties in a manner which could serve the Islamic world as an effective instrument for strengthening economic and commercial cooperation among the Member States. I am confident that your deliberations will contribute to achieving these noble objectives. I wish you good success in your deliberations. Wassalarnu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh.
