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Dr. Salim M. Al-Malik, Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) met yesterday, August 10, at the Organization’s headquarters in Rabat, Mr. Hussam Eddin Al-Tayeb, Chargé d’affaires ad interim of the Embassy of the Sudan to Morocco. The discussions revolved around ways to promote cooperation between ICESCO and the Republic of the Sudan.

The two parties reviewed the contributions of ICESCO’s initiatives during the COVID-19 pandemic. Paramount among these is the “Societies We Want” initiative, which provides humanitarian aid, sanitizers, and protective equipment against the virus to Sudan and nine other African countries. The Organization and its partners cooperated to the provide the aid to the beneficiaries.

The two officials also discussed the Sudanese remarkable participation in ICESCO’s videoconferences and webinars during the COVID-19 crisis. Among them include the Virtual Extraordinary Conference of Education Ministers in ICESCO Member States and the Virtual Extraordinary Conference of Culture Ministers. The Sudanese National Commission for Education, Science, and Culture will also hold, in cooperation with ICESCO, the education workshop.

Dr. AlMalik and Mr. AlTayeb discussed a joint action to provide school grants to Sudanese students. Their conversation also covered the keenness of Sudanese students to participate in ICESCO’s awards for the categories of painting, short stories, and short films. The two parties also discussed Sudan’s arrears to ICESCO’s budget.

Ms. Azza Bashir Ali, Consul at the Embassy of the Sudan in Rabat, and Mr. Moatassem Abdel Ghaffar Talha, Counselor at the Embassy, attended the meeting.

Dr. Salim M. Al-Malik, Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) met on Monday, August 10 with Mr. Khalid bin Salman bin Jabr Al-Musallam, Ambassador of Bahrain to Morocco, to explore ways to promote cooperation between the Organization and the Kingdom in the fields of education, science, and culture.

During the meeting, held at the Bahraini Embassy in Rabat, Dr. AlMalik highlighted ICESCO’s substantial initiatives, activities, and programs that support Member States’ efforts in mitigating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The DG stated that these initiatives are part of the open-door policy in ICESCO’s vision and strategy to forge a sustainable relationship with its Member States. One result is to implement specific programs that correspond to their respective needs.

Dr. AlMalik also commented on the notably positive feedback ICESCO’s initiatives had received. One example is the “ICESCO Digital Home” initiative, which compiled a large and diverse collection of digital contents. The “Societies We Want” is also an initiative that provided humanitarian aids to the most vulnerable local communities in some states and supported young and women entrepreneurs in these societies.

The DG also mentioned the “Comprehensive Humanitarian Coalition Initiative,” which many countries, international organizations and institutions, and donors joined and supported. He invited Bahrain to, likewise, join the Coalition.

The Bahraini Ambassador underlined that he followed with great interest ICESCO’s projects during the COVID-19 pandemic. He also commended these efforts, which have immensely helped multiple Member States in the Organization, especially in Africa.

Ambassador Al-Musallam expressed his keenness to promote constructive cooperation between Bahrain and ICESCO in the fields of education, science, and culture. 

Dr. Salim M. Al-Malik, Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) met on August 7 Mr. Raúl Guastavino, Ambassador of Argentina to Morocco, to explore cooperation prospects between the Organization and the country.

During the meeting, held at the Embassy of Argentina in Rabat, Dr. AlMalik underlined the open-door policy in ICESCO’s vision and strategy that seeks to sustain productive partnerships, in service of ICESCO’s Member States and Muslim communities across the globe.

Dr. AlMalik also noted that ICESCO adopted a new regulations charter for Observer States to ensure active participation and sustainable cooperation between both parties. He seized the opportunity to invite Argentina to join ICESCO as an Observer State.

The DG highlighted ICESCO’s substantial initiatives, activities, and programs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. AlMalik reaffirmed that the initiatives support the most vulnerable Member States in mitigating the impact of the pandemic.

The list of the initiatives includes the “Societies We Want,” which provided humanitarian aids and prevention supplies; and supported young and women entrepreneurs in several states. They also include “ICESCO Digital Home”, which abounds with a large collection of digital, educational, cultural, and outreach contents in various languages.

The DG also mentioned the “Comprehensive Humanitarian Coalition Initiative,” which many countries, international organizations, and civil society institutions joined and supported. He invited Argentina’s institutions and major corporations to also join the coalition.

The Argentinian Ambassador commended ICESCO’s clear-sighted vision and the remarkable diversity of its activities. The Ambassador inquired about the scope of work and the possibility of kick-starting cooperation between the two parties. Ambassador Guastavino reaffirmed the numerous cooperation opportunities between the Organization and Argentina in charge of education, culture, and science.

Mr. Guastavino also noted that Argentina has a large Islamic center and is home to a Muslim community that enjoys equal rights and freedom within the Argentinian society.

Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), received Thursday, August 6 Mr. Azzedine Al-Asbahi, Ambassador of Yemen to Morocco to explore cultural and heritage cooperation between the Organization and the country.

During yesterday’s meeting, Mr. Al-Asbahi submitted to ICESCO’s DG a formal request from the Yemeni Ministry of Culture to inscribe elements of Yemen’s intangible cultural heritage on the Islamic World Heritage List (IWHL). The focus was on the “Song of Sanaa” (al-Ghina al-San’ani) and the “Palm Tree: traditions, skills and practices.” These two elements are on UNESCO’s Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. UNESCO added the “Song of Sanaa” and the Palm Tree File, a joined file from 14 Arab countries, to the list in 2008 and 2019, respectively.

The DG welcomed the Yemeni request, promising to examine and submit it to the Islamic World Heritage Committee (IWHC) at the earliest. Dr. AlMalik added that the aesthetic features, beautiful rhythms, and unique lyrics of the “Song of Sanaa” are distinguishing features from other musical genres. ICESCO’s DG also described the palm tree as an authentic Arab heritage.

The Yemeni Ambassador informed Dr. AlMalik of the current disconcerting state of heritage in Yemen due to the heavy rain in the country during the last period. He added that the inclement weather caused landslides in some historic sites and the collapse of four historic buildings in the Old City of Sanaa, which are included in the World Heritage List. Ambassador Al-Asbahi stated that the impact of climate change adds to a long list of dangers threatening the Yemeni heritage. He also explained that 74 out of 114 of the 500-year-old dragon tree, found in Socotra Island, are under the threat of extinction in the next 100 years if the environmental situation in the region persists.

The two parties agreed on the importance of joint action to safeguard the Yemeni heritage, as a substantial addition to human heritage and civilizational legacy for future generations.

Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), and Mr. Furqat Sadiqov, Deputy Foreign Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan, explored Tuesday, August 4 the cooperation prospects between the Organization and the country in the coming period.

The meeting came amid the celebration of “Bukhara as the 2020 Islamic World Capital of Culture for the Asian region.” Mr. Ulugbek Maksudov, Ambassador of Uzbekistan to Saudi Arabia, and several directors of sectors in ICESCO attended today’s meeting via videoconferencing.

Dr. AlMalik reaffirmed ICESCO’s keenness to develop special cooperation with Uzbekistan, a country with a rich civilization and remarkable contributions to Islamic history in the fields of education, science, and culture.

The DG highlighted ICESCO’s substantial initiatives and programs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. AlMalik reaffirmed that the initiatives support the most vulnerable Member States in mitigating the impact of the pandemic.

One notable example is the Comprehensive Humanitarian Coalition Initiative, which many countries and international organizations and institutions joined and supported, seizing the opportunity to invite Uzbekistan to join the Coalition.

The Deputy Foreign Minister commended ICESCO’s efforts to support its Member States in the light of the current pandemic. Mr. Sadiqov also set forth multiple proposals from the Uzbek Ministry of Culture and the International Islamic Academy of Uzbekistan to promote a partnership between the Republic of Uzbekistan and ICESCO.

The proposals included organizing international festivals in Uzbekistan under the aegis of ICESCO. It also listed cooperating with ICESCO to hold an international conference on tangible and intangible heritage in the Islamic world in 2022 in Bukhara. ICESCO and the Academy would also develop workshops and training sessions, particularly in teaching Arabic.

The DG welcomed these proposals and reaffirmed the special attention the Organization pays to all the recommended topics, especially the conference on heritage in the Islamic world. Dr. AlMalik also noted that ICESCO has inscribed many heritage sites on the Islamic World Heritage List and has recently received new applications to inscribe more. ICESCO’s DG invited Uzbekistan to submit inscription files to the Organization to inscribe its historic sites.

At the end of the meeting, the two parties agreed to work together to advance the true image of the Islamic civilization and culture, which call for coexistence and dialogue.