BUSINESS FORUM, PERMANENT FEATURE OF FUTURE DIALOGUES, SAYS PM NAJIB

By Mikhail Raj Abdullah

PUTRAJAYA, June 21 (Bernama) -- The business forum will be a permanent
feature of the smart partnership dialogue which will be held biennially, Prime
Minister of Malaysia Najib Tun Razak said at the end of the Ninth Langkawi
International Dialogue here Tuesday.

Announcing new initiatives and measures to further enhance the dialogue,
which began in 1995, and the smart partnership movement, he said the forum would
include small-and-medium enterprises and business franchise opportunities
between Malaysia, Africa and the Caribbean.

The next dialogue, the Southern Africa International Dialogue (SAID) will be
hosted by Tanzania, he announced in an "Outcome Document" at the closing
ceremony of the three-day LID attended by leaders, ministers and officials from
14 African and Caribbean countries including Malaysia.

Najib said steps would be taken to promote technology-driven smart
partnership cooperation to address socio-economic disparity and increase
productivity and income.

Besides this, leaders agreed there would be initiatives to enhance and
facilitate specialisation and internalisation of research and development within
governments to nurture knowledge and innovation-based economies.

Leaders attending LID2011, held for the first time in Putrajaya, also agreed
there was need for smart partnerships to progress towards ensuring good
governance and effective administration.

This was to preserve social cohesion and achieve socio-economic growth and
political stability, the Prime Minister said.

He also said leaders agreed for the dialogue to be held biennially so
as to allow more time for participating countries to implement initiatives and
plan for future prospects.