JAKARTA, Aug 2 ― The three-day 12th World Islamic Economic Forum (WIEF), starts here today with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak as the patron, delivering a special address at the opening ceremony.

Some 2,500 delegates from more than 100 countries around the world are expected to attend the event at the Jakarta Convention Centre.

The event is scheduled to be opened by Indonesian President Joko Widodo.

Indonesia is hosting the 12th WIEF for the second time after 2009. Previous forums were held in Malaysia, Kazakhstan, Indonesia, Kuwait, Pakistan, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Themed, "Decentralising Growth, Empowering Business”, the 12th WIEF will provide a platform for participants to pool their ideas, especially on ways to implement innovative partnerships and provide opportunities for future cooperation in various sectors.

The forum also acknowledges the role of small and medium businesses in driving economic growth in national economies around the world and away from the previous dominance of big multinationals, which represent only a small portion of the business community of any particular country.

Najib, who is also Finance Minister, is expected to hold bilateral meetings with some of his counterparts during the forum to discuss bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest.

The premier is also scheduled to attend a few events on the margins of the forum, such as the soft launch of the Global Entrepreneurship Community (GECommunity) by Malaysia's Finance Ministry.

He will also witness the exchange of memorandums of understanding (MoUs) and agreements between Malaysian and international companies.

This year’s forum is expected to be the biggest and will be attended by the leaders from several countries including Tajikistan, Guinea and Sri Lanka. ― Bernama