DOCUMENT # 1

Chief Executive General Pervez Musharraf’s Speech at the Third D-8 Summit, Cairo, February 25, 2001  

“Your Excellency President Hosni Mubarak, Excellencies,  

Ladies and Gentlemen,  

I am delighted to be re-visiting the beautiful city of Cairo, a cradle of history and civilization. We are touched by the warm reception and cordial hospitality extended to us in the true traditions of your great country. The deep and abiding friendship between Pakistan and Egypt enhances for us the significance of this Summit, firstly because it is being held in Cairo and also because of the assumption of the Chairmanship of the D-8 by you, Mr. President,  I am confident that under your leadership, this Summit will be a resounding success. I would like to express our sincere thanks and appreciation to the Prime Minister of Bangladesh for providing leadership to our organization during the past two years. I commend the untiring efforts of our Executive Director, Ambassador Ayhan Kamel, in promoting D-8 cooperation and advancing our common objectives.  

Mr. President,

Four years ago, a shared vision motivated the leaders of our countries to gather in Istanbul to lay the foundation of the Developing-Eight, to promote economic, trade and technological cooperation among the members states. Developing such cooperation among countries of similar background and economies, is an endeavour in step with the spirit of our times. The results achieved thus far may have fallen short of the early expectations, yet, the Group has achieved a momentum, which however, must be accelerated to forge a stronger partnership for development. Since the Istanbul Summit, the D-8  has developed significant cooperation, created a structure for coordinating its activities and identified projects, priorities and designated sectors of responsibility for each member state. The Cairo Summit has added a new welcome dimension to our cooperation by co-opting the private sector with D-8 activities.

We applaud the holding of the first D-8 Business Forum on the eve of this Summit. We are encouraged by the enthusiastic participation of entrepreneurs, investors and business-executives in this Forum. It is both a challenge and a responsibility for our governments to facilitate greater interaction among our respective private sector businesses, which will undoubtedly lead to the expansion of our mutual trade and economic cooperation. In this regard, signing of the agreement for easing of visa procedures yesterday, is a positive step. The proposals for harmonization of customs procedures and banking systems as well as the promotion of Information and net-working through new mechanisms need to be promoted and pursued. Pakistan is ready to consider lowering of tariffs within the D-8 framework, consistent with our international obligations. This idea is viable and needs to be studied for developing practical recommendations.

We should come up with new strategies for enhancing mutual cooperation in trade. We need to exploit the large potential that exists in this area. The combined volume of world trade from our eight countries exceeds US $ 400 billion, while the intra D-8 trade comes to only US $ 14 billion. There is thus enormous scope for expansion of our mutual trade.  

Mr. President,

Pakistan as the coordinator for the sector on agriculture, has arranged a number of meetings on various agriculture related matters since the Istanbul Summit. The workshop on Food Security held in Islamabad in late 1999, adopted several recommendations designed to increase food production as well as measures to provide food resources to the poor. Pakistan also compiled a directory of Aquaculture experts, scientists and institutions. Pakistan has now offered to hold three seminars and workshops: on Bio-technology for increasing agricultural productivity; on alternate/organic fertilizer; on conservation of farm animal genetic resources.
In the future, we hope to come up with additional proposals not only in the agriculture sector but also other areas of development to which we have assigned high priority in our country. Mr. President, Domestically, my Government has assigned the highest priority to the tasks of economic revival, reform, and institution building. Information technology, energy, agriculture have been selected for special focus as sectors of rapid growth.  We have also initiated wide ranging poverty alleviation programmes, including micro-financing, food support and rural and urban development programmes. A major effort on the part of the Government is directed at improving the quality of education in the country. Without strong technological educational and information base, we cannot take advantage of the economic opportunities in the new international environment of globalized world economy.  
Mr. President,

The new global environment determined by the phenomenal technological progress, rapid development and communication and information revolutions, confronts every country with new challenges. Globalization has benefited many regions and countries and has raised expectations for rapid economic growth.  At the same time, it has spawned greater inequities and compounded difficulties for weaker economies. The global trade regime benefits mainly the rich and technologically advanced countries. Besides, external debt burden is stifling economic growth in most developing countries including Pakistan. This problem has reached alarming proportion and was thus a major issue at the South Summit in Havana and at the UN Millennium Summit last year.  The developing world needs debt relief on a large scale, to bring about the stability necessary for development  Our Group should join the efforts of other developing countries to address this grave problem.  

Mr. President,

As we are also members of the organization of the Islamic Conference, let us take a dispassionate look at the scenario in the Islamic world. Our economic picture is dismal. Despite possessing 70 percent of the world’s energy resources and representing a quarter of the world’s population, our collective contribution to the global economy is insignificant. The collective annual GDP of the OIC countries is around US $ 1200 billion, while that of Japan alone is a staggering US $ 5500 billion.

We need to ask ourselves, why this disparity?  This is only due to the vast technological superiority of the developed countries, which in turn is only because of the better developed human resource. There are only about 380 universities in the entire Muslim world as against 1000 universities in Japan alone.  The OIC countries produce only 500 PhDs annually in contrast to 3500 PhDs from the UK alone. Not just this, the Muslim countries managed to produce just one percent of the world’s research publications.

Human resource is our most valuable asset that needs to be nurtured and developed.  In this context, I propose that the D-8 should identify various reputed scientific and technological centres in the member states for promotion of exchange programmes and preferential access to our youth. The product of these institutions will be a valuable asset for the development of the knowledge base in our countries and the Islamic world.

Here, I would like to emphasize the need for strong collaboration between the D-8, Group and the OIC. Our countries should not only develop within the D-8 framework but assume the role of an engine of growth for the Islamic World.  

Mr. President,

In several regions of the world, absence of peace and stability, coupled with security concerns, heightened the challenges of development. Economic well-being flourishes in peaceful condition; instability is detrimental to progress.

For most part of the last century the Middle East has suffered because of denial of justice to the Palestinian people and the consequent Arab-Israeli conflict. The Arab and Islamic world continues to experience the pain of this tragedy and the negative impact of the conflict on economic development and well being of the people in the region.
We stand  united with our Arab brothers in demanding a just and lasting solution to the Palestinian problems.

Mr. President,

Peace has also eluded South Asia for over half a century.  The long-standing Kashmir dispute has been universally recognized as the root cause of tensions in South Asia. Pakistan has consistently sought a peaceful resolution of the dispute in accordance with the wishes of the Kashmiri people, through meaningful dialogue and on the basis of international norms of justice and legality. We look for support from the Muslim Ummah for the Kashmiri cause.
The unstable Afghan situation is, indeed, also a matter of concern for us. A humanitarian disaster is impending in Afghanistan. The ongoing strife, unprecedented drought as well as additional UN sanctions have compounded the hardships of the Afghan people and has led to a large influx of refugees into Pakistan. This situation demands that the international community in general and the Islamic countries more specifically, come forward with increased humanitarian assistance to avert the looming humanitarian disaster. Afghanistan crisis for peace can only be achieved through engagement and recognition of ground realities. The Taliban should be engaged rather than isolated.  

Mr. President,

Our countries are endowed with enormous human and natural resources. We face similar challenges of development. Our aspirations and objectives are complimentary. Let us decide today to provide each other preferential support in the areas of economic and developmental cooperation. May Allah guide our endeavours for the realization of our full potential and for the collective progress and prosperity of our countries and the Islamic world.  

I thank you all.”