11 July 2004 - REPORT OF THE XVI. SESSION OF THE COMMISSION

XVI. Session of the Commission was held in Tehran on 10-11 July 2004. The D-8 Commissioners and Head of Delegation were kindly received by H.E. Mr. Kharazi, Foreign Minister of the I. R. of lran. The Foreign Minister underlined the crucial importance of the expansion of D-8 intra-trade and hence the early conclusion of Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA). He also emphasized on the need to promote cooperation and collaboration in the field of science and technology by bringing together the D-8 scientists and the academicians.

The Chairman, Ambassador S.M.I 1. Adeli, made his opening Statement Then the Commission adopted the revised draft agenda by inserting as new item <>, the Indonesian proposal for selling up a Central Banks forum. The Executive Director presented his report, (The texts of the statements are attached herewith)

Item 4. Consideration of the reports of the meetings which have been held since the Tehran Summit.

a) Second Meeting of the High Level Trade Official (28-29 June 2004, Islamabad):
The delegate of the l.R. Iran as the sponsor of the two draft agreements, one on PTA and the other on Administrative Assistance in Customs Mutters briefed the Commission on the outcome of the Second Meeting of the High Level Trade Officials. The sub-group considered the whole draft on customs cooperation. The draft is Open for comments from the member countries to be given by the end of September. The preambular part of the PTA together with Art. I concerning the definitions and the Art. 2 governing the principles were considered. It is expected that the work be completed during the next two rounds. The need to strengthen the D-8 Secretariat to serve as a focal point for exchange of information and processing trade data was also underlined.

The delegation of Pakistan as the host country stressed the importance of the regional trade arrangements under the present economic environment since the outcome of the multilateral trade negotiations have become unpredictable after the Cancun experience.

The Pakistani Delegation proposed to establish a D-8 virtual group (e-group) on trade to facilitate the coordinating unit on trade and related matters including the early conclusion and implementation of Preferential Trade Agreement. The group based in Islamabad would comprise experts on trade and WTO issues. Further details of the proposed group will be circulated through the coordinating unit for consideration at the next Commission’s meeting.

The Commissioners expressed their thanks to the Government of Pakistan for organizing the meeting and appreciated the contribution of the member countries and their experts for the progress made on the two draft texts. They expressed the hope that the high level trade officials would speed up their work at the subsequent meetings so that the agreements could be concluded at an early date.

The Indonesian delegation expressed their willingness to host the next meeting and would consult their trade authorities before announcing the date. They would endeavour to organize the next meeting before the end of December 2004. The Commission recommended that the duration of the next HLTO Meeting be extended to three days.

b) Seminar on Water Conservation and Drip Irrigation (26-28 April 2004, Islamabad)
The Pakistani delegate presenting the report of the Seminar stated that they invited FAO expert to the meeting, who made a valuable contribution to the discussions. He emphasized the need to develop linkages with other International organizations specialized in thisfield. He also requested member countries to designate focal points for effective collaboration and cooperation.

The Commissioners appreciated the work of the Seminar and supported the idea of Linkages with other organizations within the UN System. Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Turkey stated that the cooperation in this field should not be merely confined to agriculture but go beyond, citing the management and conservation of water resources. The Commissioner of Iran referred to the importance of water as a source of energy and Egyptian Commissioner also stressed the importance of water conservation in D-8 countries. The Commission recommended the formulation of a plan of action, for implementing various recommendations for the meeting,

c) Workshop on Insurance nod llemsuratirc (1-2 March 2004, Cairo)
The Commissioner of Egypt presented the report of the Workshop and referred to the various recommendations adopted, including combating money laundering. The Commissioners appreciated the work done, stressingthat the main issue here is to converge the activities towards the financial sector. The Commission decided that it would be more appropriate to discuss money laundering issues in the context of the Meeting of the Officials of Central Banks and Ministries of Finance.

The Commissioner of Malaysia informed the Commission that Malaysia is convening the Meeting of Supervisory and Regulatory Authorities of D-8 on Insurance and Takaful in Kuala Lumpur in on 13 July 2004 to discuss the setting up of a mechanism for cooperation in this field.

Item 5 and 6: Calendar of events:
The Commission look note of the following:
-    Meeting on Establishing a Shipping Business Forum: The Bangladesh delegate stated that he was not in a position to give a date for this meeting but would refer the matter to his authorities. In the course of the the discussions, an understanding was reached that in case Bangladesh could not give a date for this important meeting till September, then another member country may volunteer to organize it. The Commission decided that events which could not be held for 3 consecutive times as scheduled would either be cancelled or be put for renewed consideration.

-    Second Working Group Meeting on Energy by the IR of Iran: 9-10 October 20O4

-    Workshop on Data Collection, Classification Systems and Management of SMEs By Pakistan: Towards end of 2004. A concept paper is to be prepared by the host country for circulation.

-    Seminar on WTO Issues by Pakistan; Mid-November
The Seminar would be helpful in capacity building in member countries to enhance their ability to effectively deal with various WTO issues.

-    Second Meeting of Officials of Central Banks/ Ministries of Finance by the I.R. of Iran: The Commission underlined the importance of cooperation in banking sector for the promotion of trade. It was agreed that the Indonesian proposal to establish the Framework of Central Banks Forum should be included in the agenda of the second meeting of officials. In the light of the discussions over this Indonesian proposal, the meeting of central bank governors could be convened at a later stage. To this end, the Indonesian delegate requested thee member countries to give their written comments on their proposals prior to the meeting of officials. The meeting noted that the Malaysia has provided a written comment on Indonesia’s proposal.

-    Meeting of senior officials with private sector participation to consider new industrial projects by the I.R of Iran: The date yet to be announced.

In conclusion, the Chairman requested the member countries to finalize the dates by the end of September so that the meetings planned for the current year could take place.

Item 7; Second D-8 Business Forum and Tehran Trade Fair

Mr. Khamooshi, the Chairman of the Iranian Chamber of Commerce Industries and Mines, briefed the Commission concerning the implementation of the decisions of the Second Session or the Business Forum. In this vein, he informed the session of the establishment of the Business forum Secretariat within the Chamber in order to facilitate the contacts between the D-8 Chambers. He also appraised the meeting about the arrangements for the D-8 Trade Fair. (The text of his statement is attached herewith),

In response to the inquiry from the Chairman for rather weak interest from the members, Mr Khamooshi made the following comments:

-    At present, the trade among the member countries is carried out to a great extent through third countries. The IR. of Iran has lifted all non-trade barriers. D-8 countries should try hard to engage in direct trade.
-    Banking relations required by the trade are not satisfactory either. The banking transactions are mostly going through again third countries.
-    Flight connections between the member countries Eire not direct. In most cases, the businessmen have to take connecting flights.
-    Visa procedures require improvements to facilitate the contacts between businessmen
-    In certain cases, passport controls are subject to time consuming procedures.
-    Satisfactory shipping lines do not exist between the member countries.

The Commissioners thanked Mr. Khamoosiii for his briefing and candid comments concerning the impediments to the expansion of D-8 trade. They supported the step taken by the Iranian Chamber to establish a Secretariat in accordance with the article 9 of the report of the Second Business Forum. In this connection. it was suggested that the member countries may designate focal points in their own chambers. On the other hand, the Commissioners, while requesting additional information on technical matters related to the trade fair, stated that they would encourage their private sector to participate in the Tehran Fair.

In conclusion, responding to various remarks made by the Mr. Khamooshi on the reasons impeding D-8 trade, the Chairman stated that the Governments have already initiated the necessary steps on several topics such its PTA and Customs Cooperation Agreements, easing visa procedures, shipping and banking practices. He also Suggested that from now on the Commission may invite the Chairmen or the Chambers of Commerce from 3-5 member countries as was decided at the Business Forum.

Item 8; Review of the existing arrangements for the Coordinating Unit as well as the secondment to the Unit.

Following the extensive discussions on this topic, the Commission concluded that the Coordinating Unit has to be strengthened if additional tasks would be conferred upon it. It was agreed that as a first step, the Coordinating Unit could be seconded by experts as offered by the IR of Iran and by Pakistan. To this end, arrangements for the secondment are to be-jointly coordinated and carried out by the sponsoring countries and the executive Director. The member countries are to be kept informed of the final arrangements. In the light of this experience, the expansion of the mandate and staff member together wilh its budget is to be considered at the next session of the Commission, in compliance wilh the instructions given at the Tehran Summit. For this purpose the Executive Director should present a revised paper earlier presented to the Commission which would include additional mandate and tasks to be given to the Coordinating Unit required number of additional stuff, financial implications for the budget end proposed scale of contributions.

Item 9: Liaison with other international organizations.
The Commission appreciated the steps taken by the Executive Director to establish liaison with various international organizations. It was also agreed that the member states would continue to seek financial and technical assistance from various international organizations in support of D-8 activities.

Item 10: Cooperation in International Fora:

In order to coordinate and harmonize the positions or the member countries in various international fora on multilateral issues, the Commission agreed on the following steps;
-    The member countries inform their representative to hold consultations with their D-8 counterparts participating in international meetings.
-    Any member state hosting an international meeting is encouraged to invite resident D-8 ambassadors to brief them on the events.
-    The missions of D-8 countries in New York and Geneva are called upon to meet and coordinate their positions on important items in the UN and WTO agenda.

Item 11: Any other Business
a.    Next meeting of the Commission and the Council of Foreign Ministers:
The Commission recommended that it would be proper lo have a Council meeting in New York during the forthcoming UNGA. which would be   preceded by a meeting of the Commission. The chair country would inform the member countries of the outcome.
b.    Agreement on Easing Visa Procedures for D-8 Businessmen:
The Commission appealed to the member countries who have not ratified this agreement to do so in order to bring the agreement into force at an early date.
c.    Operation of various data bases enumerated at the Tehran Declaration;
The Commission called upon the member countries lo put into operation the databases at an early date, and to update them regularly.

The Commissioners congratulated HE. Dr Adeli, Chairman, for successfully conducting deliberations at the Commission, and expressed their profound thanks and gratitude to the Government of the I.R. of Iran for the warm hospitality and excellent arrangements.

DECISIONS OF THE XVI. SESSION OF THE COMMISSION (10-11 July 2004, Tehran)

The Commission, having met in Tehran on 10-11 July 2004, adopted the following decisions and recommendations:
1.    Having reviewed the work of the Second Meeting of the High Level Trade Officials (HLTO) which was held on 28-29 June 2004 in Islamabad, appreciates the progress made on two draft agreements, namely Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) and Agreement on Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters.
2.    Giving its strong support to the work of the HLTO, calls upon early conclusion of the draft agreements.
3.    Invites the member countries to give their written comments on the amended Customs matters draft, in particular on Articles 9-IT, preferably by the end of September 2004.
4.    Welcomes the offer made by Indonesia to convene the next session of the HLTO in Jakarta possibly before the end of 2004. The exact date to be communicated in due course.
5.    Appreciates the recommendations of the Seminar on Water Conservation and Drip Irrigation which was held in Islamabad on 26-28 April 2004 and calls upon the member countries to designate focal points for effective collaboration in this field, going beyond agriculture. The Commission looks forward to the initiative which will be taken by the Government of Pakistan to chart a Framework for Action in consultation with the member countries for the implementation of various recommendations.

6.    Recognizing the global concern of water scarcity, emphasizes the importance of
the contribution of the D-8 member countries In this field also at the international fora and invites member countries to develop a coordinated approach on issues of water conservation and wafcrtiianagement.
7.    Appreciates the recommendations of the Workshop on Insurance which was held
in Cairo on 1-2 March 2004 and invites the member countries to take appropriate steps within the confines of their legal framework for their implementation.

8. Approves the dates already announced for the meetings in the calendar of events for the current year as indicated in the report of the Commission and calls upon those member countries who have not yet done so to set the precise dates of the events they will be hosting. It was also decided that events which could not be held for 3 consecutive times as scheduled, would either be cancelled or be put for renewed consideration.
9  Invites the member countries to give their written comments on the Indonesian proposal for setting up a Central Bank’s Forum, and recommended that the matter be taken up at the meeting of central bank officials.
10. Appreciates the preparations made by the I. R. of Iran for organizing the D-S Fair in Tehran. Calls upon the member countries to make utmost effort to encourage through their national chambers, their industrialists and businessmen to actively participate in this fair.
11. Welcomes the offer made by the I.R of Iran and Pakistan as a first step to strengthen the Coordinating Unit through secondment of officers and requests them to coordinate necessary arrangement with the Executive Director.
l2. Also requests the Executive Director to present to the next session of the Commission a revised paper to establish an efficient secretariat.
l3.While appreciating the Executive Director’s efforts to establish liaison with other international/regional organizations, encourages the member countries to also seek their technical and financial assistance for D-8 projects.
14.Invites those member countries that have not yet done so to expedite the ratification of the Agreement en Simplification of Visa Procedures for Businessmen so diat it could enter into force without further delay.
15. Invites the member countries concerned to take the necessary steps for seiting up and regular updating of the data bases referred to in the Tehran Declaration.