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10TH D-8 SUMMIT
D-8 virtually held its triennial summit on 8 April 2021 under the theme of “Partnership for a Transformative World: Harnessing the Power of Youth and Technology” hosted by the Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh with the participation of heads of the state and government from Bangladesh, Egypt, Nigeria, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Pakistan and Turkey as member states and the President of Islamic Development Bank. Having chaired the organization since 2017, Turkey handed over the chairmanship of D-8 to Bangladesh in the summit.
The summit started with a promotional video on Bangladesh. Later, leaders’ resolution of conducting the summit even though COVID-19 pandemic precluded a physical gathering was emphasized, and the floor was given to Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, President of Turkey. Erdoğan began his words with remembering Necmettin Erbakan, who pioneered the foundation of D-8, with gratitude and expressed his wish that D-8 contributes both to the member states and the whole world in terms of justice, prosperity and peace. He stated that the COVID-19 has revealed two significant facts: material development is not enough alone and international cooperation is essential for overcoming global challenges. He also drew attention to the large populations of the D-8 countries with a high rate of young population and its importance in today’s world. After pointing out the essentiality of transformation towards renewable energy and innovation as well as the risks and threats regarding the financial issues, he concluded his words with a call for solidarity and aid for the refugees from Palestine, Rakhine (Myanmar), Yemen and Syria.
Leaders has an agreement on the following statements:
- International cooperation is indispensable both for combating the COVID-19 pandemic -particularly for vaccination- and for a more thriving and peaceful world.
- Digitalization and data analysis shape the world economy. In this sense, it is necessary to mobilize financial resources, show determination and establish partnerships in order to fully realize the potential.
Within the scope of the summit, the bloc adopted the Decennial Roadmap for 2020-2030 and the Dhaka Declaration 2021. With the roadmap, the bloc aims to strengthen its capacity of the implementation of relevant strategies and action programs to achieve the 2030 Sustainability Agenda. In the declaration, the member countries express their “resolution to fight against all threats to economic development as well as peace and prosperity of the Member States, including terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, sectarianism and extremism, amongst others”.
