ANKARA Seventeenth meeting of the OIC standing Committee for the Economic and Commercial Cooperation was inaugurated with a message from Turkish President Ahmad Nedcet Ceser in Istanbul Wednesday.

According to the Anatolian news agency, the Turkish president in his message called for a more active role on part of OIC Standing Committee for the Economic and Commercial Cooperation as for the international issues.

He said the body's standing has been promoted on the international stage and that is why it is expected to play a more active role in the international scene.

He expressed regrets over the postponements in the implementation of the plan of action of the committee and called for probing into the root causes of the delays in the implementation of the plan of action.

In the committee's plan of action practical steps are foreseen to develop the economic and commercial cooperation among the member states of the organization.

Emphasis was also been put on the crucial role played by this organization in the international developments.

Representatives from 56 countries member to the organization including representatives from Iran, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Syria, Kuwait, Indonesia, Uganda, Qatar, Bourkina Faso, Palestinian authority are participating in the gathering, according to IRNA.

The modalities of the implementation of the plans set forth by Organization of the Islamic Countries (OIC) to develop the economic and commercial cooperation among the member states as well as the problems facing the organization are to be discussed in the meeting.

The committee has been established in 1984 with an aim to develop the economic and commercial cooperation among the OIC member states and create a coordination in these cooperation.

The Standing Committee is charged with supervising over the activities of the organization and the decisions adopted by it. The 16th OIC Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation was held last May in Istanbul.