Dr. Seyed AliMohammad Mousavi, the D-8 Secretary-General, in his opening address commended the initiative taken by Izmir Chamber of Commerce in organizing the D-8 Chambers of Commerce and Industry Izmir Meeting in Izmir, Turkey. He mentioned that chambers of commerce from major cities of the Member States would have the prospect of enhancing their networking as well as fostering new business deals not only at the national level but also at the city and provincial level.

The Izmir Chamber of Commerce hosted the D-8 Chambers of Commerce and Industry Izmir Meeting in Izmir, Turkey from 20-21 October 2016. The meeting was attended by representatives of the chambers of commerce and industry from major cities of the D-8 Member States.

Dr. Mousavi highlighted the important role of the public and private sector partnership in moving forward the common agenda of the D-8 and stressed that the synergy of the public-private sector collaboration should be further exploited. He explained that the D-8 Member States have endeavoured to create necessary infrastructure for trade to prosper such as, business-friendly policies and attractive investment incentives in order to promote and facilitate private sector in doing business. Dr. Mousavi added that it would be inspiring to see the private sector working hand in hand with the Member States to seize the opportunities and take the lead from the various initiatives being instituted by the Member States.

The two-day meeting included sharing of information on activities being carried out by each participating chamber of commerce and industry as well as exchange of experience on ways and means to increase cooperation and trade flows between participating cities and Member States.