KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 20 — Muslim countries should increase investment and trade among themselves to prosper each other, Economic Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Azmin Ali said today.
In the Plenary Session of Kuala Lumpur Summit (KL Summit) 2019 today, he said Muslims and Muslim-majority nations accounted for approximately US$6.5 trillion or 7.6 per cent of the global economy in 2018 and were 1.9 billion people combined.
He said this should enable Muslim countries to invest in and support each other’s economies.
“As alluded to earlier, there needs to be greater trade amongst Muslim countries to create that critical mass and economies of scale to generate wealth and prosperity.
“Foreign direct investment in each other’s economies will be a boon to the wealth creation of Muslim economies even as we continue to trade and invest with other states,” he said in the session theme “Redistribution of Wealth - Shared Prosperity”.
In his speech, Azmin promoted Malaysia’ Shared Prosperity Vision (SPV) 2030 that was launched earlier this year to restructure the country’s economy to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor.
He said that Muslim countries should create a framework akin to SPV 2030 and the “Prosper Thy Neighbour” philosophy Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was promoting.
“While some Muslim countries are blessed with rich natural resources, reliance on resource-based industries have resulted in under-developed economies where resources are not exploited efficiently and productivity remains stagnant. This has created instability in the region as disparity between Muslim and non-Muslim countries as well as among Muslim countries continues to widen. A more united and inclusive framework is needed.
“A ‘Prosper Thy Neighbour’ approach within the framework of Muslim nations means that we need to facilitate free and fair trade amongst ourselves so as to generate long-term economic growth,” he said.
United States Council of Muslim Organisation secretary general Oussama Jamal agreed with Azmin that Muslims have the power to end poverty if wealth was more equally distributed.
“Allah has provided us the bounty in this world. Muslims are responsible to end poverty, not just for Muslims, but for the whole world.
“Islam is against the hoarding of wealth so the wealth must be distributed equally,” he said.
Perlis Mufti Datuk Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin, who was on the panel, highlighted the “buy Muslim” first campaign here.
Denying the campaign was a veiled boycott of non-Muslims products and services, he said that Muslim countries should no longer be puppets to the West that only enriched the elites.
“Our pride is bruised and we become a slave to them (Western powers) economically. Maybe there a few rich Muslims who can afford expensive foreign cars but they (the country) could not even build bicycles
“As Allah directed us to build strength to defend ourselves and economy could be use as a weapon to do just that,” he said.
Others on the panel were Mohamed Amine Mokra from Ukranian Kyiv National University and Maldives Minister of Home Affairs Imran Abdallah.
KL Summit board of advisors’ member Mohd Daud Bakar moderated.
