The Minister of the Economy, Planning and Regional Development, Mr. Alamine Ousmane Mey, as representative of the Head of State, H.E Paul Biya, took part in the 39th Ministerial Session of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation (COMCEC) of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which held from 2 to 5 December 2023 in Istanbul (Türkiye).
Presided over by the President of the Republic of Türkiye, Mr.Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the proceedings were attended by a number of other personalities and leaders from the Islamic world, including the Secretary General of OIC, the President of the Islamic Development Bank Group, as well as a number of Ministers in charge of the Economy and Trade from OIC member countries and academics.
In his opening statement on behalf of the President of the Republic of Cameroon, Alamine Ousmane Mey commended the leadership of the Turkish authorities for their investment in maintaining peace and stability within the OIC. He also recognised Turkey’s economic performance, and its many forms of support towards the development efforts of Cameroon, notwithstanding the unfavourable global context. The Minister also reaffirmed Cameroon’s commitment to values of peace, stability and the peaceful resolution of conflicts around the world, without which there can be no trade and development. He also indicated that Cameroon would be keen to benefit from platforms such as the COMCEC, through exchanges of experience and best practices, particularly in the areas of trade, agriculture and digital transformation, in order to achieve its emergence objectives by 2035.
As an outcome of the meeting, participants adopted a number of recommendations aimed at strengthening the promotion of intra-OIC trade and investment. These included: implementation of the OIC Trade Preferential System, trade financing, private sector development, enhanced financial cooperation, improved transport and communication infrastructure, digital transformation, tourism development, increased agricultural productivity, etc.
On the sidelines of these proceedings, the Minister for the Economy, who was accompanied by Cameroon’s Ambassadors to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Republic of Türkiye, held talks with some Turkish authorities, notably the Minister for Trade and employers’ organisations (DEIK, MUSIAD), on investment opportunities in Cameroon and Türkiye. A number of cooperation opportunities were reaffirmed, and new avenues of partnership explored in the fields of infrastructure, energy, wood processing, agro-industry, Islamic finance, tourism, etc…. with companies such as SUMMA, Global Elite, YENIGUN, GK CONSTRUCTION, AKUNSA FOOD INSEAT, among others. These companies have expressed their interest in investing in Cameroon, through the financing and implementation of projects, PPP’s, the creation of joint ventures, equity participation and private sector financing, not to mention the opening of branches in Cameroon.
As a reminder, the COMCEC is a multilateral platform for economic and commercial cooperation of the OIC. It is convened every year by the Turkish President and is attended by the Ministers of Economy and Trade of Member States, as well as OIC specialised institutions. It is tasked with discussing developments in the world economy in OIC countries and recommending strategies for strengthening economic and trade exchanges between Member States.
