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The training program for the second group of trainees in the International Professional Teaching Certificates project, implemented by the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) in cooperation with the Egyptian Ministry of Education and Technical Education, and King Saud University in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, with support from the Saleh Kamel Humanitarian Foundation, kicked off on Friday, April 26, 2024, in Cairo.

The Program, which includes training 180 teachers in its second edition, began with an orientation day about the program, its main stages, and its activities. It also included presentations of some experiences from beneficiaries of the first edition, which included 120 teachers. The orientation day was attended by Mr. Mohamed Hedi Sehili, Director of the Legal Affairs and International Standards Department at ICESCO, Ms. Jihane El Assimi, Supervisor of the Financial Affairs Department, and Dr. Rabab Zidan, Director General of the General Administration for Educational Leadership Affairs at the Egyptian Ministry of Education and Technical Education.

The orientation day concluded with ceremony for distributing certificates of appreciation to the winners of competitive contests organized during last Ramadan, aiming to link the spiritual and emotional aspects with the cognitive and skillful achievements of the trainees from the first group.

The International Professional Teaching Certificates project was launched on December 16, 2023, with the aim of training 2000 teachers in several Egyptian governorates over a period of 3 years, to qualify educational practitioners and equip them with the necessary competencies to achieve and develop the goals of educational curricula.

Dr. Abdelilah Benarafa, Deputy Director-General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), called for giving proper attention to Sufi or mystical poetry, considering it a stream of Arabic poetry, in the same vein as Madeeh (eulogy of the Prophet Muhammad), noting that despite its importance in the lives of Muslims throughout history, it has not received the attention it deserves in the books of Arab literary history and public education.

This came in a scientific paper titled “Sufi Poetry as a Translator of Divine Knowledge,” presented by Dr. Benarafa on Friday, April 26, 2024, at the scientific seminar of the World Poetry Festival program at the Faculty of Arabic Language affiliated with Al-Qadi Ayyad University in Marrakech. The festival is organized by the House of Poetry in Morocco, in partnership with the Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication, ICESCO, and the Marrakech City Council, as part of the celebration of the Ochre City as the capital of culture in the Islamic world for 2024, under the high patronage of His Majesty King Mohammed VI.

After reviewing the major historical milestones of Madeeh poetry, Dr. Benarafa drew a clear distinction between Madeeh and Sufi poetry, emphasizing the characteristics of the latter and its prominent figures. He also indicated that Sufi poetry is an expression of States, Stations, Openings, Tastings, stages of spiritual education, and wayfaring. It may ascend and transcend, under the guidance of the realized ones among the Knowers (of Allah), until it becomes a purely mystical poetry, gravitating around the stages of true knowledge, and the levels of existence.

The World Poetry Festival, held over three days under the theme “Marrakech: The Renewed Poem”, features broad participation of poets from Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan, Egypt, Türkiye, Bahrain, Senegal, Tunisia, Bangladesh, Mauritania, Yemen, Mali, Djibouti, and Morocco.

The festival’s agenda includes two scientific seminars, as well as a number of cultural, artistic, and educational activities at historical sites in Marrakech, in addition to the launching of two poetry competitions for students.

Responding to an invitation from the Islamic Development Bank Group (IsDB Group), Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), headed a delegation from the Organization during the proceedings of the annual meetings of the IsDB Group for 2024, hosted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in Riyadh, under the patronage of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. The meetings commenced today, Saturday April 27, 2024, and will continue until the 30th, coinciding with the golden jubilee celebration of the IsDB, marking 50 years since its establishment.

This year’s meetings are held under the theme: “Cherishing our Past, Charting our Future: Originality, Solidarity, and Prosperity,” with the high-level attendance of ministers of economy, planning, and finance from the Bank’s Member States, as well as representatives of various financial institutions, Islamic banks, the private sector, development agencies, and international and regional organizations.

ICESCO’s participation in these meetings comes within the framework of the strong and robust partnership it shares with the IsDB Group, and its commitment to deepening this effective partnership in service of its Member States, in areas of mutual expertise, and in support of developmental programs in the Islamic world, engaging its youth in development and equipping them with the necessary future leadership skills in the fields of education, science, and culture.

The annual meetings of the Islamic Development Bank Group aim to provide a global platform for decision-makers to discuss the most pressing economic challenges facing Islamic countries, and to explore current and future opportunities to advance social and economic development in these countries, through organizing a series of seminars, sessions, and meetings focusing on social and economic development, as well as regional and international cooperation.

The delegation from ICESCO participating in this year’s meetings includes Mr. Anar Karimov, Head of the Partnerships and International Cooperation Sector, and Dr. Dinara Guliyeva, an expert in the sector.

The training session, organized by the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) and the Moroccan Ministry of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Innovation, in collaboration with the Federation of the Universities of the Islamic World (FUIW) affiliated with ICESCO, was launched as part of a program to enhance educational and digital skills for faculty members in universities and higher education institutions. The Program aims to train 600 professor-researchers from 12 Moroccan universities in the use of digital tools and open educational resources in teaching.

During the launch ceremony at the Ministry’s headquarters in Rabat on Thursday, April 25, 2024, Dr. Omar Halli, Advisor to the Director-General for FUIW, emphasized that this Program provides a valuable opportunity for new professors and researchers to acquire digital educational skills and be equipped with innovative educational tools aimed at enhancing the quality of higher education.

The Program’s launch comes in implementation of a memorandum of understanding signed by ICESCO and the Ministry last February. Beneficiaries will undergo four full-year training courses covering five key areas: educational sciences and university teaching methods, digital teaching methods, e-learning, teaching on remote learning management platforms, media coverage basics for studio production, open education and open educational resources (OER), copyright and open license, and professional ethics and scientific integrity.

The Culture and Communication Sector of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) held a meeting with a delegation from the Cultural Policies Center of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to explore avenues for enhancing cooperation in the fields of culture and arts education.

During the meeting, held today, Thursday April 25, 2024, at the ICESCO headquarters in Rabat, Dr. Mohamed Zinelabidine, Head of Culture and Communication Sector at the Organization, presented ICESCO’s vision and programs in the cultural sphere, highlighting ICESCO’s contributions to the attainment of sustainable development goals through the promotion of cultural and creative industries, digital cultural economy, and the utilization of technology to address challenges and offer innovative solutions.

Ms. Paola Leoncini, Director of the Cultural Policies Center at UNESCO, stressed the importance of developing productive cooperation between UNESCO and ICESCO at the regional and international levels to assist member states of both organizations in implementing cultural policies that foster sustainable development, and exchanging experiences and best practices in the field.

Over the next two days, a series of meetings will be held between ICESCO’s Culture and Communication Sector and the UNESCO delegation. These meetings will focus on fleshing out the details of the cooperation plan between the two organizations, with the goal of leveraging culture as a public good to construct safe and cohesive societies.

The second “MasterClass,” organized by the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), in collaboration with the Ministry of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Innovation and Mohammed V University, in Rabat, kicked off on Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The MasterClass, themed “ICESCO Open Education Chair: Towards Equitable Access to Inclusive and Quality Education,” saw the participation of several Moroccan and international experts.

The three-day event, being held in-person and via videoconferencing, at the Faculty of Sciences of Mohammed V University, is held under the rallying call, “Enhancing Scientific Research through Building the Scientific and Educational Capacities of Ph.D. Student, Young Researchers and Professors.” This event, which is part of ICESCO’s efforts to develop scientific research of its Member States in education, educational resources and practices, open science, copyright, authorship and licensing, as well as open data and personal data protection, will benefit all Moroccan universities over the years 2024-2025.

During the opening session, Dr. Mohamed Al-Rakraki, Dean of the Faculty of Sciences, praised the fruitful cooperation with ICESCO and its contribution to advancing open educational and digital resources.

For his part, Dr. Khalid Berrada, Acting Director of Higher Education and Pedagogical Development at the Moroccan Ministry of Higher Education, Scientific Research, and Innovation, Director of ICESCO’s Open Education Chair, commended the leading role of the Chair in supporting the national strategy to accelerate the transformation of higher education, scientific research and innovation system in Morocco.

Moreover, Dr. Koumbou Boly Barry, Head of ICESCO’s Education Sector, and Mr. Aziz Al-Hajir, Program Manager at the Sector, have also emphasized the importance of ICESCO’s specialized scientific chairs in education and their role in enabling the universities in the Islamic world and beyond, deepening applied educational research, advocating excellence and innovation through the integration of modern technology and open educational resources, and harnessing artificial intelligence, in accordance with international standards and scientific developments.

The Sector of Science and Environment at the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) organized a training workshop on crisis and natural disaster management in Derna, Libya. The workshop was organized in cooperation with the Libyan National Commission for Education, Culture and Science and Zallaf Libya.

The two-day workshop, which concluded its proceedings on Monday, April 22, 2024, discussed and assessed the current policies relevant to crisis and natural disaster management and put forth improvement suggestions. It also aimed to provide the participants with the necessary tools and knowledge to deal with such conditions, explore and provide innovative and effective solutions to manage and mitigate the impact of natural disasters; foster community engagements and raise individuals’ awareness of their roles in preventing and addressing disasters.

Speaking at the opening session via videoconference, Dr. Adel Smeda, Expert at ICESCO’s Science and Environment Sector, noted that the Organization recognizes the importance of a comprehensive approach in preparing for and recovering from natural disasters and is committed to supporting its Member States’ efforts to build their capacities to mitigate risks and natural disasters.

The Expert added that investing in education and science to build strong and sustainable societies is one of the key principles in ICESCO’s vision and strategic orientations, a principle which the Organization strives to establish through promoting scientific research and encouraging the use of modern technology to address and recover from environmental risks.

The training workshop benefited a number of workers in the field of disaster and crisis management, local administrations, the Libyan National Authority for Safety, Ambulance and Emergency, the electricity, communications, water and sanitation sectors, environment offices, women’s associations, agriculture and forestry control departments, and a group of public relations and media workers.