Category: News update

Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), reaffirmed that overcoming the COVID-19 pandemic requires intensifying efforts, complementing roles, and exchanging expertise.

The DG also called on countries of the Islamic World to form a high-level team of specialized experts and distinguished researchers to address the current repercussions. He noted that ICESCO Center for Strategic Foresight, as well as competent sectors at the Organization, are willing to contribute to the preparation of the systematic approach of the mission and performance of the team.

The statement was part of Dr. AlMalik’s address at the 47^th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which kicked off on Friday, November 27, 2020, in Niamey, Niger. The session was under the theme: “United against Terrorism for Peace and Development.” The Council concluded its proceedings last Saturday.

ICESCO DG thanked the government of Niger for the warm reception, and the OIC General Secretariat, which its Secretary-General represents, for the invitation to attend the session. The event was the first of its kind since the start of COVID-19 pandemic.

“This reflects the participants’ responsibilities to find the necessary solutions and measures to address the negative repercussions of this pandemic,” he added.

Dr. AlMalik explained that ICESCO, by virtue of its competencies and in light of its tasks, has taken the pandemic as an opportunity to consolidate its position on the international scene. ICESCO launched a set of strategic initiatives to support the efforts of Member States in mitigating the effects of the pandemic. These initiatives included:

1. An international award for discovering an efficient treatment or protective vaccine against the COVID-19 pandemic, with USD 200,000 in prize money.
2. An integrated virtual learning program to link students with their teachers and schools, including a package of electronic materials, equipment, and software for the benefit of 30 of the neediest Member States.
3. ICESCO Digital Home initiative, which contains rich materials, knowledge resources, scientific references, educational curricula, and educational media.
4. Technical and logistical support to several Member States that the pandemic affected.
5. The Societies We Want Initiative, which is part of ICESCO’s knowledge initiatives with a set of strategic studies on the future of the Islamic world, the future of Africa, and the ethics of Artificial Intelligence.
6. ICESCO also held videoconferences of education ministers and culture ministers, in addition to dozens of forums and international conferences, meetings, and lectures on educational, scientific, and cultural issues related to the impact of the pandemic.  
7. In a bid to ensure the cohesion of all these efforts, ICESCO established the Comprehensive Humanitarian Coalition to mobilize competencies and unify the efforts aiming at confronting the pandemic.

ICESCO DG called on the participating countries to further support the Comprehensive Humanitarian Coalition to achieve its objectives in the upcoming period.

“The Coalition’s operational program includes a set of field projects and specialized activities. Several Member States and regional and international organizations have already joined it. Besides, the leaders of many Member States commended this Coalition,” he concluded.

As part of the “Comprehensive Humanitarian Coalition” and the “Societies We Want” initiatives, the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) provided USD 100,000 in aid to Niger to support NGOs and several flood-hit local communities to rehabilitate the infrastructure.

During a special ceremony organized on Friday, November 27, 2020, in Niamey, Dr. Salim M. Al-Malik, ICESCO Director-General (DG), and Dr. Idi Illiassou Mainassara, Minister of Public Health of Niger, signed the agreement detailing the projects and programs that the grant will fund. The implementation will take place in cooperation with the Organization and the concerned authorities in Niger.

Mrs. Brigi Assalo, the wife of the Prime Minister of Niger, attended the signing on behalf of the First Lady of Niger, Dr. Lalla Issoufou Maleika, who sponsors several institutions and associations working in the humanitarian and social fields and the health sector in the country.

The agreement sustains ICESCO’s efforts to support its Member States in countering the negative effects of crises through a set of initiatives, projects, and programs that the Organization has launched and implemented since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.

       The Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, met with H.E. Muhammadu Issoufou, President of Niger. The meeting occurred on the sidelines of the two-day 47^th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) that kicked off face-to-face yesterday in Niamey under the theme: “United Against Terrorism for Peace and Development.”

During the meeting, ICESCO DG congratulated the President of Niger on the successful hosting of the session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers and expressed his thanks to Niger for the warm reception and good organization.

President Issoufou praised the distinguished work ICESCO undertook in support of its Member States. The president appreciated the Organization’s programs and projects in Niger, in cooperation with the competent authorities, especially with regards to supporting efforts to counter COVID-19.

President Issoufou had received Dr. AlMalik at the presidential palace in Niamey during the DG’s official visit to Niger last January. During the visit, the two sides agreed to develop cooperation between ICESCO and Niger in the Organization’s fields of action.

Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), explored on Friday in Niamey, the areas of cooperation between ICESCO and Niger with Dr. Daouda Mamadou Marthé, Nigerien Minister of Primary Education, Literacy, Promotion of National Languages and Civic Education, President of the Nigerien National Commission.

During the meeting, the two parties examined the implementation phases of ICESCO’s cooperation projects and programs in Niger, in the fields of education, science, and culture.
The Minister lauded ICESCO’s assistance to Niger during the COVID-19 pandemic. He also commended the Organization’s outstanding work in the educational, humanitarian, and social fields while stressing Niger’s keenness to sustain constructive cooperation and partnership with ICESCO.

The current visit of Dr. AlMalik to Niger is part of his participation in the 47th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), being held on 27-28 November 2020, in Niamey, under the theme: “United against Terrorism for Peace and Development.”

The Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) and the National Commission for Education, Science, and Culture of Niger launched the “Project on countering the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic by supporting innovation and the development of entrepreneurship among women and youth” in Niger. The project is part of the support that Alwaleed Philanthropies provided to implement a joint initiative with ICESCO to help 10 African countries confront the negative repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The ceremony, which took place yesterday, November 27, 2020, in Niamey, was organized under the patronage of His Excellency the President of Niger, Mohamedou Issoufou. The event saw the participation of Mrs. Brigi Assalo, wife of the Prime Minister of Niger, on behalf of Dr. Lalla Issoufou Maleika, the First Lady of Niger; Dr. Salim M. Al-Malik, Director-General (DG) of ICESCO; and Minister of Primary Education, Literacy, Promotion of National Languages and Civic Education, President of the Nigerien National Commission, Dr. Daouda Mamadou Marthé, and several Niger government ministers, representatives of the United Nations, civil society organizations, and NGOs.

During her address at the ceremony, which the wife of the Prime Minister of Niger delivered on her behalf, Dr. Maleika praised ICESCO’s new vision, which prioritizes Africa. She also praised the initiatives the Organization launched and implemented to support the efforts of Member States in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic. The initiatives included the “comprehensive humanitarian alliance” that multiple countries, institutions, international bodies, and donors joined and supported. The goal was to strengthen humanitarian and social aid and implement tangible projects and programs in several countries that the pandemic affected.

Dr. AlMalik reaffirmed, during his address, that ICESCO will continue to work with African countries to advance education, science, and culture. The effort is part of ICESCO’s reengineered vision to become a reference point for civilizational outreach, leading the Organization’s Member States towards a better era based on Artificial Intelligence and technologies.

The DG expressed his gratitude to ICESCO’s permanent partner, Alwaleed Philanthropies, chaired by HRH Prince Alwaleed bin Talal AlSaud, for the Foundation’s generous support to the ICESCO’s humanitarian and social initiatives to help 10 African countries, including Niger.

At the end of the ceremony, Dr. AlMalik and Dr. Marthé signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the implementation phases of the project. The goal is to develop a sense of innovation and entrepreneurship among women and youth in Niger and support the private sector, entrepreneurs, and small enterprises.

For four decades, Alwaleed Philanthropies has supported and spent more than 4 billion dollars on social welfare and initiated more than 1000 projects in over +189 countries, managed by 10 Saudi female members, reaching more than 1 billion beneficiaries around the world, regardless of gender, race, or religion. Alwaleed Philanthropies collaborates with a range of philanthropic, governmental, and educational organizations to combat poverty, empower women and youth, develop communities, provide disaster relief, and create cultural understanding through education. It seeks to build bridges for a more compassionate, tolerant, and accepting world.

Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), will participate in the 47th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), due to be held on 27-28 November 2020, in Niamey, Niger, under the theme “United against Terrorism for Peace and Development.”

The participation of Dr. AlMalik in the session is upon the invitation of Dr. Yousef bin Ahmad Al-Othaimeen, OIC Secretary-General. The meeting’s agenda features a set of topics and issues relevant to the Islamic world.

On the sidelines of the meeting, Dr. AlMalik will meet the heads of several delegations of the Member States and international organizations to explore cooperation and publicize the major initiatives, activities, programs and projects of ICESCO during the lockdown period to counter the pandemic.

Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), received yesterday at ICESCO’s headquarters in Rabat, Mr. Mohamed Mahmoud Ben Labat, Ambassador of Mali to Morocco.  The two parties explored the ways to develop and promote the cooperation prospects between ICESCO and Mali.

The goal is to contribute to national capacity-building in Mali in the sector of education, science, culture, communication, and human and social sciences. The Ambassador presented his credentials to the DG as a Permanent Delegate of Mali to ICESCO.

The meeting saw the participation of the heads of sectors and the advisors of ICESCO DG. Dr. AlMalik reviewed ICESCO’s new vision, which has been translated into major programs and initiatives for the benefit of several Member States, including Mali, to counter the negative repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic in the fields of education, science, and culture.

Dr. AlMalik reiterated ICESCO’s constant willingness to support the competent parties in Mali to develop Arabic language courses and the Islamic school program. ICESCO also supports Mali’s efforts to ensure the conservation of manuscripts and the protection of heritage in Timbuktu, in particular, and Mali, in general.

The Organization assists Mali in implementing programs of social support and education on peace. The activities are likely to entrench the values of coexistence, social cohesion, and the rejection of violence and extremism in the country, expressed the DG.

Mr. Ben Labat commended the outstanding work of ICESCO, which generously supported Mali. He also expressed his country’s desire to benefit from ICESCO’s expertise in Arabic language courses and the conservation of manuscripts and the protection of heritage.

The Ambassador stressed Mali’s keenness to sustain and promote constructive cooperation with ICESCO through the specialized national institutions, including Ahmed Baba Institute of Higher Learning and Islamic Research, which is the biggest center for the conservation of manuscripts in Sub-Saharan Africa.