Category: Front Page

Commemorated this year under the theme “Accelerating Change,” World Water Day is held annually on March 22nd as a reminder of the importance of safe drinking water access for all, as well as the need to support Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6) which aims to ensure universal access to water and sanitation.

On this occasion, the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) reaffirms its commitment to supporting programs and initiatives to ensure access to safe and clean water for all and establish good water governance. This is key to achieving sustainable development goals related to water quality and management, particularly as current statistics reveal that over 2 billion people around the world do not have access to safe drinking water, while 4.2 billion people lack sanitation services. This alarming situation underscores the paramount importance of establishing good water governance and strengthening sanitation infrastructure, especially since climate change is exacerbating both water scarcity and water-related hazards such as droughts in various countries.

In this perspective, ICESCO calls upon countries to consolidate their efforts with those of international and regional organizations, institutions, and research centers to take effective, coordinated action and implement policies, programs and projects based on modern technology, innovation, and renewable energy to address environmental challenges and water scarcity.

It is worth noting that ICESCO attaches particular importance to water issues and has launched various programs to help improve water resource management in its Member States, namely the Program for Water and Sanitation Services Improvement implemented in 1000 rural schools across different countries of the Islamic world.

On World Water Day, ICESCO reiterates its unwavering support to its Member States for investing in water management systems, sanitation and public hygiene services to achieve water security, ensure social and economic development and achieve food security in the Islamic world.

The Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) participated in the first edition of Djéol Cultural Festival, organized by the Mauritanian Ministry of Culture, Youth, Sports and Relations with Parliament, in the historic city of Djéol, which is inscribed on the Islamic World Heritage List.

The festival, which concluded on Sunday (March 19, 2023), is part of the celebration of Nouakchott, Culture Capital in the Islamic World for 2023. It aimed to promote the cultural role of the city, preserve its heritage and valorize its developmental assets.

In his address during the launch ceremony of the festival, HE Mohammed Ould Ghazouani, President of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, expressed his pride in inscribing the ancient city of Djéol on the national heritage list and ICESCO’s Islamic World Heritage List, stressing his willingness to provide all kinds of support to preserve and to promote the cultural heritage of this city.

For their part, Mr. Mohamed Ould Soueidat, Minister of Culture, Youth, Sports and Relations with Parliament of Mauritania, and Mr. Omar Lee Abdoulay, Mayor of Joule, expressed their happiness with this festival and the initiatives and programs geared towards investing in the development of the city.

The festival witnessed art, heritage, music and poetry performances, as well as exhibitions of handicrafts and written and oral cultural heritage.

ICESCO was represented at the ceremony by Dr. Nami Salihi, Supervisor of the Islamic World Heritage Center at the Culture and Communication Sector.

A distinguished delegation of Supreme Court Presidents from Europe and Africa, university professors and experts visited, on March 17, 2023, the International Exhibition and Museum of the Prophet’s Seerah and Islamic Civilization, currently held at the headquarters of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) in Rabat.

The delegation comprised of 38 personalities from 23 countries who had participated in the International Seminar on the History of Supreme Courts, held on March 16-17, 2023, by Morocco’s Court of Cassation, in partnership with the Association of Supreme Courts of Cassation of French-speaking Countries (AHJUCAF).

These included Dr. M’hammed Abdenabaoui, First President of the Court of Cassation, Deputy President of the Supreme Council of Judiciary Power (CSPJ) in the Kingdom of Morocco, Dr. Victor Adossou, President of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Benin, AHJUCAF President, and Ms. Moutngui Esther Ekoue, President of the Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa (OHADA).

The delegation was received by Dr. Abdelilah Benarafa, Deputy Director-General of ICESCO, who highlighted that the exhibition, which is the first to be held outside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, is the fruit of the strategic partnership between the Organization, the Muslim World League (MWL), and Morocco’s Mohammadia League of Scholars.

During their visit, the delegation toured the exhibition and museum and received detailed explanations of the content of the different pavilions and sections.

The Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) participated in the 49th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Member States of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which was held in the Mauritanian capital, Nouakchott, under the theme: “Moderation: Key to Security and Stability,” in the presence of 40 foreign State Ministers.

Ms. Amira El-Fadil, Head of the Partnerships and International Cooperation Sector, and Dr. Ahmed Said Bah, Advisor to the ICESCO Director-General for Partnerships and International Cooperation, Supervisor of the Secretariat of National Commissions and Conferences, represented ICESCO at the Session, which concluded its activities on Friday, March 17, 2022.

The Session’s participants commended ICESCO’s successful programmes and projects implemented for the benefit of its Member States in the fields of education, science and culture, highlighting Organization’s openness and cooperation with international partners.

The Session touched upon several political, economic, cultural, social and humanitarian issues related to OIC and its member states, followed by a discussion on moderation, in addition to the adoption of a set of draft resolutions on several key issues.

The Sciences and Technologies Sector of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) took part in an international symposium on Smart City in Light of Digital Transformations of Territorial Domains, which was held by the Berkane region prefecture in the Kingdom of Morocco, in cooperation with several concerned institutions and authorities, and in the presence of many experts and international specialists in the field.

During the two-day symposium, which concluded its activities on Thursday, March 16, 2023, Dr. Adel Smeda, Expert in ICESCO Sciences and Technologies Sector, highlighted, via his videoconference participation, the key challenges resulting from demographic growth in cities, mainly: the exploitation of natural resources and environmental pollution, as well as the role of smart, flexible and sustainable cities and modern technologies in mitigating the consequences of climate change.

ICESCO’s representative delivered a presentation on ICESCO’s efforts in supporting its Member States in their pursuit of green and sustainable policies that put the preservation of the environment and natural resources at the heart of their priorities, through initiatives, projects and workshops on using modern technologies in addressing environmental protection challenges.

The “Mishkat” hall at the headquarters of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) hosted a training session on Arabic fluency and accuracy for non-Arabic speakers, which benefited 164 professionals in the field of teaching Arabic to non-Arabic speakers from Chad, Nigeria, Benin, Cameroon, Malaysia, Indonesia, Uzbekistan, Bashkortostan, Vietnam, Senegal and Morocco.

Dr. Samir Jaafar, an Educational Training Expert, moderated the two-day training session which concluded on March 16, 2023. The session cast light on the importance of fluency and accuracy in teaching Arabic and aimed to enable participants to differentiate between the two concepts. It also sought to help participants achieve complementarity between different language skills and to develop their students’ speaking and writing abilities both inside and outside the classroom.

It is worth noting that this training session is the seventh in the series of ICESCO’s International Program “Mishkat of Arabic for Continuing Educational Training and Professional Development for Teachers of Arabic to Non-Arabic Speakers,” which is part of the cooperation program between ICESCO and the Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation for Distinguished Academic Performance.

For the fourth successive year, the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) streams during the holy month of Ramadan, as part of its comprehensive initiative “ICESCO Digital Home,” the videos series “Ramadan Whiffs” and “Intellectual Sparks,” through the Organization’s platforms on social media.

In these clips, which have achieved tremendous success over the past three years, a host of prominent intellectual, cultural and religious figures from the countries of the Islamic world and beyond present their thoughts and views on the most important contemporary intellectual and religious issues.

Through this initiative, ICESCO aims to spread focused and meaningful messages that highlight the essential role played by both women and men in reforming society and entrenching enlightening cultural and religious values that are based on peace, tolerance and coexistence between communities.

The Organization also aims to raise the most important issues and discuss new ideas that enrich cultural life and contribute to renewing the fields of thought, culture, knowledge, literature and science; endeavors to promote the values of peace and the dissemination of knowledge; and enhance religious, cultural and intellectual communication between eminent personalities and the public to support spiritual and intellectual exchange.

On the advent of the holy month of Ramadan and given the large and increasing number of visitors to the International Exhibition and Museum of the Prophet’s Seerah and Islamic Civilization, currently held at the headquarters of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), in Rabat, the Exhibition will adopt a new work schedule: the first period starts before Iftar from midday until 3:00 pm while the second period starts after Iftar from 9:00 pm until 1:00 am from Tuesday until Sunday.

The Exhibition, being held under the high patronage of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may Allah assist him, has received large numbers of visitors of all age groups from different Moroccan cities, including residents and guests of the Kingdom of Morocco, eager to learn more about the biography of the Prophet (PBUH).

The Exhibition, since its launch on November 28, 2022, which has crowned the strategic partnership between ICESCO, the Muslim World League, and the Mohammadia League of Scholars, is the first of its kind outside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia seeking to showcase the message of Islam and its values of justice, peace, mercy, tolerance, coexistence and moderation from the Holy Quran, the noble Sunnah and the bright Islamic history.

The Center of Arabic for Non-Arabic Speakers of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), concluded its four-day workshop, on Thursday (March 16, 2023), held in cooperation with the Arabic Language Studies and Debate Center of Sultan Muhammad Al-Fatih University, in Istanbul, on using modern linguistics in teaching Arabic to non-Arabic speakers.

The workshop benefited more than 50 educational officials and teachers of the Arabic language from various Turkish educational institutions. It included educational presentations on applied educational linguistics and various strategies and modern methods in language teaching and learning.

The workshop, supervised by Dr. Youssef Ismaili, expert at ICESCO Center of Arabic for Non-Arabic Speakers, aimed to enhance the teaching skills of the participants through modern linguistics and introduce the educational strategies in teaching various Arabic language subjects and ways to prepare pedagogical materials for teaching language subjects.

Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), received Amb. Nazim Samadov, Ambassador of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the Kingdom of Morocco, who presented his credentials as Permanent Delegate of his country to ICESCO.

During the meeting, held on Thursday, March 16, 2023, at ICESCO Headquarters in Rabat, Dr. Al-Malik stressed the Organization’s keenness to develop its strategic partnership with Azerbaijan, which is reflected in the implementation of a number of joint projects and programs. The Director-General also commended Azerbaijan’s support for many of ICESCO’s initiatives.

Moreover, the two parties discussed a number of ideas and proposals to strengthen partnership relations between ICESCO and Azerbaijan in the upcoming period, within the framework of the action plan between the two parties.

For his part, Ambassador Samadov reaffirmed that his country’s keenness to appoint him as Permanent Delegate to ICESCO confirms the importance Azerbaijan attaches to partnership with the Organization, stating that he will strive to develop this relationship in support of ICESCO’s great role in promoting the fields of education, science and culture.