PAKISTANI President Asif Zardari assumed leadership of the Summit of the Heads of State and Government of the Eight Developing Nations, D8, after the expiration of the tenure of President Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria as the leader of the body after.
President Jonathan emerged the leader of the D8 in April of 2010.
Held at the grounds of the presidential palace in the Islamabad, the summit had in attendance leaders from Iran, Indonesia, Egypt, Turkey, Malaysia and Bangladesh.
President Jonathan urged the D-8 member countries to continue to forge closer cooperation in order to make the D-8 the engine for growth and prosperity in member countries .
“From what I have seen and observed, from the commitment of Member Countries, I can say with confidence that the future of
the D-8 is bright and solid.
“Of course, this is not to say that the road ahead will be all smooth and without bends, bumps and twists; far from it.
“The advantage the D-8 has is that it is a voluntary organisation of like-minded States with a shared vision to work together for the benefit of all.
“I believe that by working together to promote our shared vision and common objectives, we could build the D-8 into a model of successful south-south cooperation,’’ he said.
Jonathan urged the new chairman of the D-8 to encourage exchange of visits between Heads of State and Government, saying: “This, I believe, will bring our countries, peoples and their governments closer, because such visits will open other vistas of co-operation among the D-8 countries.”
Speaking on some of the accomplishments recorded in the course of the two years of Nigeria’s stewardship as chair of the D-8,the President said the organization had empowered the private sector in member states.
“Throughout Nigeria’s stewardship, we were guided by the vision to nurture our organisation in a way that will empower the private sector in our countries to be the driving force propelling our various development programmes and activities.
“I believe this is the right road to take, because it reflects our shared vision to limit the role of governments in the day-to-day activities
of the D-8 to merely that of a catalysts and enablers of economic and trade cooperation among our various countries.”
Jonathan listed the entry into force of the D-8 Preferential Trade Agreement in August 2011 and the Multi-lateral Agreement among
D-8 Countries on Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters, which came into force in October 2011, as some of his achievements.
“The Agreement of Simplification of Visa Procedures for Businessmen of the D-8 Member States, which had been ratified much earlier, completes the three main Agreements pivotal to trade promotion and cooperation among D-8 countries.
“The ratification of these Agreements by almost all Member States attests to the faith we all have in the D-8 as a viable platform for fostering economic and trade relations among our various countries,” he added.
Jonathan pledged Nigeria’s support to the organisation and his successor.
President Zardari said Pakistan was glad to assume the chairmanship of the organization and promised to work with member countries for the attainment of D-8 goals.
Established in 1997 in Istanbul, Turkey, the organization seeks to promote development and cooperation among member countries.