The Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, on the first day of his visit to Azerbaijan, met with Mr. Emin Amrullayev, Azerbaijani Minister of Education, to explore ways of fostering cooperation and partnership between ICESCO and Azerbaijan in education.

In a meeting held today at the Ministry of Education in Baku, the two parties touched on the challenges that faced education last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the imperative need for solutions to countering such crises. The goal is to ensure the continuity of education and reduce educational loss that the longtime closure of education institutions has caused.

The two parties examined cooperation proposals in education, namely those relevant to scholarships for students in ICESCO Member States and exchange between Azerbaijani universities and the Member Universities of the Federation of the Universities of the Islamic World (FUIW). The officials also explored cooperation in the teaching of Arabic to non-Arabic speakers between ICESCO Center of Arabic for non-Arabic speakers and the Arabic-teaching Azerbaijani schools and the development and implementation of the programs of the training, qualification, and capacity-building for teachers.

The meeting discussed cooperation in scientific research between research centers in Azerbaijan and their counterparts in ICESCO Member States. The measure includes conducting research that meets the true needs of Member States and yields practical and economically viable outcomes to achieve development. The parties also considered establishing ICESCO chair in an Azerbaijani university, under ICESCO Chair Program.

The participants in the meeting from the Azerbaijani side included Mr. Oktay Sudef Ogly Gurbanov, Ambassador of Azerbaijan in Morocco; Mr. VasifEyvazzade, Secretary-General of the Azerbaijan National Commission for Education, Science, and Culture, and several officials from the Ministry of Higher Education.

In attendance from ICESCO were Amb. Kahlid Fathalrahman, Supervisor of the Sector of Partnerships and International Cooperation, Head of the Department of Dialogue and Cultural Diversity; Dr. Mohamed Zinelabidine, Head of the Sector of Culture and Communication; Dr. Raheel Qamar, Head of the Sector of Science and Technology; and Mr. Samy El Kamhawy, Supervisor of the Department of Information and Institutional Communication.