Dr. Seyed AliMohammad Mousavi, the D-8 Secretary-General, visited Izmir, the third biggest province of Turkey on 3 March 2016. Dr. Mousavi’s visit to Izmir, one of the most important provinces of Turkey with enormous economic potentials, took place as part of the Organization’s external relations to establish and nurture effective partnership with local authorities and institutions in Turkey. 

He was warmly received by the authorities and institutions. During the visit, he met Mr. Mustafa Toprak, Governor of Izmir, Mr. Aziz Kocao?lu, Mayor of Izmir, Prof Mehmet Füzün, Rector of Dokuz Eylül University, Mr. Ekrem Demirta?, and Chamber of Commerce of Izmir. He exchanged views on improving economic relations and cooperation opportunities among D-8 countries. He also underlined the importance of working closely with D-8 and local authorities in order to boost trade and economic cooperation. He finally thanked the top representatives of the Izmir province and through them, the Government of the Republic of Turkey for their continuous support toward the D-8. 

Apart from these meetings, Dr. Mousavi addressed the audience in a seminar at the Dokuz Eylül University. The D-8 Secretary-General interacted and exchanged with academicians and students. He highlighted that the objectives of D-8 are to improve member states’ position in the global economy, diversify and create new opportunities in trade relations, enhance participation in decision-making at international level, and improve standards of living.

In answering questions from academicians and students regarding the activities and achievements of D-8, he explained the major activities of the Organization in light of the performance since its inception 19 years ago. “I believe D-8 has achieved remarkable progress, and the statistics regarding the level of cooperation in various sectors supports this largely positive assessment.  To cite an example, substantial increase in intra-D-8 trade can indeed be attributed to the D-8’s success. The creation and implementation of the Visa Agreement, Customs Agreement and Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) have served to facilitate, regulate and promote actual cooperation among the Member Countries” Dr. Mousavi stated.