Palestinian Minister of National Economy, Jawad Naji on Friday said that members of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (COMCEC) aimed to create a special fund for small and medium scale businesses.
Speaking to the Anadolu Agency (AA) in Istanbul where he arrived to attend the meeting of the COMCEC, Naji stressed that the COMCEC was an excellent mechanism to promote economic cooperation in the Islamic world.
"COMCEC plans to promote economic growth, investment projects, small and medium scale businesses and commerce in the Islamic world," Naji stressed.
-Turkey-Palestine relations-
"Economic and political relations between Turkey and Palestine continue to develop," Naji said.
"We have bilateral trade relations with Turkey. We discussed a project to erect an industrial zone in Jenin. We will review a free trade agreement we signed with Turkey in the past so we can raise bilateral trade volume," Naji underlined.
-"Israeli occupation an obstacle for growth of Palestinian economy"-
In response to a question on the latest economic situation in Palestine, Naji said that there were two reasons for the financial crisis in Palestine.
"The first has to do with the Israeli occupation which prohibits Palestine from using its natural resources. The Israeli occupation is an obstacle for the growth of the Palestinian economy," Naji noted.
"Another reason for the economic crisis in Palestine has to with certain countries not fulfilling their promises for assistance to Palestine. We can say that the Palestinian administration is going through a difficult period financially," Naji underlined.
"The people of Palestine continue to struggle for a Palestine that has freedom and justice and whose capital would be Jerusalem. We thank Turkey for being on the side of Palestine," Naji also said.
