The IsDB Group regional hub in Turkey organized a workshop on Regional Cooperation and Integration on 19 December, 2018 at SESRIC Headquarters in Ankara. The Workshop discussed the IsDB Group Regional Cooperation and Integration Policy (RCI) in line with the emerging needs of the its Member Countries. Ms. Marwa Lasheen, Director for Economy and External Affairs, and Ms. Damla Haciibrahimoglu, Program officer, from the D-8 team participated in the different sessions of the workshop.
During the session discussing Cross Border connectivity, the D-8 representatives reviewed the D-8 Organization policies in addressing the challenges of “software” and “hardware” cross border connectivity, focusing on policy harmonization in its six priority, as well as the successes in cooperation in transportation sector as a hardware instrument overcoming the challenge of geographical remoteness. The discussion of the Investment Climate and Competitiveness and cross border investment shed light on the role of the IsDB in supporting the Member Countries’ efforts to mobilize larger amounts of funds to invest in regional economic infrastructure.