Rustam Minnikhanov and Marat Khusnullin take part in opening KazanForum 2025 and Russia Halal Expo Exhibition

On 15 May the Rais (Head) of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov , the Deputy Chairman of the Russian Government Marat Khusnullin and the Deputy Secretary General of the OIC Ahmad Kaves Sengendo took part in a solemn opening of the  XVI International Economic Forum “Russia-the Islamic World: KazanForum” and the Russia Halal Expo 2025 and the Kazan Exhibition Center. 

Welcoming participants of the Forum on behalf of the Russian Government, Marat Khusnullin stated that the main slogan of the KazanForum is”Trust and Cooperation”. “It is strengthening of mutual trust that has become a foundation used for building current relations between Russia and Muslim countries. Trust is the key factor for the development of our partnership, which covers all aspects of our multi-faceted cooperation and turns into a strong strategic partnership,” he said. 

Marat Khusnullin mentioned the dynamic growth of trade turnover between Russia and the OIC countries which has increased by 44 per cent for the last four years and the tourism which stimulates economic growth and gives new prospects for the development of partnership. For the last 5 years the number of tourist trips between Russia and the OIC countries increased by 26 per cent with the number of tourists having grown 2.5 times. 

He thanked Rustam Minnikhanov and all organizers of the Kazan forum and said: “Every year the Kazan Forum shows its high efficiency and facilitates strengthening of friendship and the development of cooperation. The scale of the events, the number of its participants and the broad geography of the countries prove that Russia and Islamic countries are united not only by common interests but also by deep respect to each other,” the Russia Deputy Prime Minister added. 

In his turn Rustam Minnikhanov thanked the Russian President, Marat Khusnullin and all federal power bodies, the OIC and numerous participants of the forum for their enormous support and said: “During the years of its existence the Kazan Forum has become a unique platform for uniting representatives of international organizations, state power bodies, financial institutions, diplomatic missions, leading investors and businessmen as well as of top managers of Russian and Foreign companies.” 

He also mentioned the Russia Halal Expo exhibition of Halal industries and emphasized: “The forum and the exhibition facilitate the exchange of experience and best practices in Halal industry, the development of cultural exchange, giving opportunities to discuss new technologies and the sustainable development and strengthening mutual understanding between people and political ties between countries.”

The Rais of the republic also spoke about the key topics of the Forum and cultural and sports events organized on its sidelines such as the Kazan Halal Market, the Modest Fashion Day, the AAOIFI conference and others.

In his speech Ahmad Kaves Sengendo stated that in the last decade the global Halal industry has been growing dynamically and if in 2021 the amount of Halal produce market was 5.7 trillion dollars, this year it will reach 7.7trillion and by 2034 the world Halal market will grow to the number of 9.4 billion dollars US. 

He also emphasized that the Halal industry is also actively developing is Russia , making about 10 per cent of the Russia food market and  the OIC countries markets are main importers of Russian Halal products. 

“I am very happy to take part in the KazanForum and the Russia Halal Expo which are organized in Kazan, the city famous for its rich history and cultural heritage and its impressive industrial capacity. From the bottom of my heart I thank for such a high organizational level,” Ahmad Kaves Sengendo added. 

After the opening ceremony the guests got acquainted with the Russia Halal Expo 2025 exposition, where Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Turkey and UAE and number of other countries as well as the regions of Russia demonstrated   their produce and technologies.

The International Economic Forum “Russia-the Islamic World: KazanForum” is the main federal platform of economic interaction of Russia and the Islamic world countries whose main aim is to strengthen trade, economic, scientific, technological, social and cultural ties of Russia regions and OIC and to facilitate the development of Islamic financial system institutions.