Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), received Mr. André Azoulay, Advisor to His Majesty King Mohammed VI of the Kingdom of Morocco, Founding President of the “Essaouira-Mogador” Association, on Wednesday, 8 February 2023, at ICESCO Headquarters in Rabat, and together discussed ICESCO’s modernization and development and explored ways to promote cooperation between the Organization and the Association in areas of common interest.

ICESCO DG opened the meeting by expressing his thanks and appreciation to Mr. Azoulay for his participation in several of the Organization’s conferences and activities in 2022, underscoring his keenness to forge a fruitful partnership between ICESCO and the “Essaouira-Mogador” Association in various fields.

Dr. AlMalik reviewed the key thrusts of ICESCO’s vision and strategic orientations, as well as its development and modernization over the last three years, explaining that the Organization adopts the approach of openness to all, strives to foster the values of peace and tolerance, promotes civilizational dialogue and contributes through its various initiatives, programmes and activities to serving humanity without distinction among the beneficiaries.

For his part, Mr. Azoulay commended ICESCO’s efforts in the areas of peace-building and social cohesion and its youth leadership programmes, praising the positive developments and changes in the Organization and its forward-looking vision.

Following the bilateral meeting, Dr. AlMalik and Mr. Azoulay joined the expanded meeting, which brought together Dr. Abdelilah Benarafa, ICESCO Deputy DG, and a host of department and sector directors at the Organization. The meeting touched upon ICESCO’s major programmes currently implemented to support Member States in the fields of education, science and culture.

At the close of the meeting, the two parties affirmed their keenness to promote cooperation between ICESCO and the Essaouira-Mogador Association and agreed on sustaining coordination to organize a joint international conference on the Argan tree and issue a study by ICESCO’s Strategic Foresight Center on the future of Essaouira.

Dr. AlMalik then gave Mr. Azoulay a tour of the International Exhibition and Museum of the Prophet’s Seerah and Islamic Civilization currently hosted at ICESCO in partnership with the Muslim World League (MWL) and Morocco’s Mohammadia League of Scholars.

Mr. Azoulay expressed his fascination with the museum exhibits and the state-of-the-art technologies used to display details of the biography of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), noting that this scientific event contributes to promoting interfaith tolerance.