The New Nation - Internet Edition

BSS, Dhaka

Foreign Adviser Dr. Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury yesterday said the organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) needs to have a new vision to survive and prosper in this challenging period.

Addressing the plenary of the OIC Foreign Ministers' meeting in the Senegalese capital Dakar on the eve of the summit of the Islamic heads of government and state, he said the OIC must be reformed to be able to deal with the issues of the 21st century.

The issues he mentioned in his speech were poverty alleviation, development, climate change, women's empowerment and the need for knowledge-based skills for the youth community, a message received here said.

"The time has surely come to move from talk to action, from vague deliberations to implementation with practical measures for the benefit of our people," he said.

The Foreign Adviser underscored the need for designing the trade and commerce among the Islamic countries in a way that the poorest people are specially benefited.