Kosovo set to join OIC

Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu has welcomed the application tabled by the Republic of Kosovo to become an official and permanent member of the organization. He told the visiting Prime Minister Hashim Thaci following a meeting Saturday in Jeddah that the OIC had since 1996 supported Kosovo’s right for independence.
"Kosovo suffered a lot from injustice and repression under an administration that did not care for the political, religious and cultural rights of the people of the country. Now, after independence and the recognition of 91 countries including 30 OIC members, the organization looks forward to Kosovo soon becoming a member of the UN and the OIC," he said.
Thaci, on his part, appreciated the continued support of the OIC to his country until it gained independence and said he discussed with the secretary-general all the available means of further consolidating cooperation between Kosovo and the 57 OIC member countries. He said Kosovo maintained good relations with all countries of the region and was hoping to have close ties with Serbia.
The prime minister said the policies of his country, with more than 95 percent of its population Muslims, were in conformity with the general political stances of the Muslim countries. He explained that to be a member of the OIC, Kosovo should first be a member of the UN. "Kosovo is determined to further strengthen its ties with the OIC in the next phase," he said.
In a meeting with Saudi businessmen at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) on Saturday, the prime minister asked Saudi businessmen to invest in various fields in his country.
"Kosovo is rich in raw materials including agriculture, electricity, minerals and tourist attractions," he said.
Thaci recalled that Kosovo’s GDP growth rate last year was about 5 percent, and 79 percent of its land is arable. "Saudis can invest in basic infrastructure projects, communications, trade, cooper, zinc, iron, coal, cooper, silver and other minerals," he said.
He told the businessmen they could also invest in tourism and said many Westerners came to his country for medical tourism. "We have ample facilities for entertainment tourism including mountains, hot springs and ice skating," he added.
Thaci said Kosovo is strategically located in the heart of the Balkan, so when businessmen come to it they will actually be in the middle of Europe.
He said the Kosovo-Arab Friendship Chamber was a non-profitable organization established to promote the country as a confluence between the West and the East. "The chamber is making strenuous efforts to cement the country's ties with the Arab and Islamic world," he said. Welcoming his guest, JCCI Secretary-General Adnan bin Hussain Mandoura said the chamber was keen to support investments in Kosovo and to entice Saudi businessmen to invest in it.
"The JCCI is determined to support investments in Kosovo and to establish business partnerships with it," he said.
Kosovo obtained its independence in 2008. It has an area of 10,577 square kilometers and a population of 2.3 million.