Dr. Salim Al-Malik, Director-General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), visited the historic island of Gorée in the Republic of Senegal, and the House of Slaves Museum there, where he was received by several members of the municipal council and Mr. Eloi Coly, the museum’s curator who provided some details about the history of “Slavery Island,” that was discovered in the fifteenth century A.D. and registered on the World Heritage List in 1978.
During the visit, on 9 January 2024, ICESCO Director-General toured the different sections of the Museum, which embodies the history of the charming island located off the coast of the Senegalese capital, Dakar, whose strategic location was the reason for its successive occupation by four colonial powers: Portugal, France, the Netherlands, and England. Its unique buildings still bear witness to this colonial era.
Dr. Al-Malik expressed his admiration for the Museum and the historical importance of the island, which, despite its small surface, was the largest center for the slave trade on the African coast, as more than 15,000 Africans were deported from it to Europe and the Americas between 1726 and 1848. He urged the museum curator to submit a file to register the Island on ICESCO’s Islamic World Heritage List.
At the conclusion of the visit, Dr. AlMalik expressed the Organization’s readiness to cooperate in developing the Island, as part of partnership with Senegal in the cultural fields, and signed in the golden record of the Museum.
Jeddah in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is set to host the meetings of the 44th session of the Executive Council of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), and the second consultative meeting of the Organization from 16 to 18 January 2024. These meetings, organized by ICESCO and hosted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, represented by the Saudi National Commission for Education, Culture, and Science, will see the participation of delegations from the Organization’s Member States, as well as representatives from major regional and international organizations and bodies.
The ICESCO Executive Council agenda includes an inaugural session featuring speeches by Dr. Mohamed Ayman Ashour, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, President of the Egyptian National Commission for Education, Science, and Culture, and President of ICESCO General Conference; Dr. Dawas Tayseer Dawas, Secretary-General of the Palestinian National Commission for Education, Culture, and Science, Chairman of ICESCO’s Executive Council; Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, ICESCO Director-General; Ahmed bin Abdulaziz Al-Bulahid, Secretary-General of the Saudi National Commission for Education, Culture and Science; Additionally, guests of honor Mr. Sergio Mujica, Secretary-General of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and Dr. Nicholas Peter, President of the International Space University in France, will also deliver speeches.
Moreover, the agenda will involve the award ceremony of the ICESCO prize for girls’ and women’s literacy to the 2023 edition winners. The prize is awarded to civil society organizations and non-governmental organizations working towards achieving women’s and girls’ literacy. It will also include a presentation on the Cultural Indicators for Islamic world countries, the signing of agreements between ICESCO and several international organizations and institutions, and working sessions to review reports on ICESCO’s achievements and activities of 2023, the Organization’s action plan and budget for 2024-2025, progress made in drafting the Islamic World Charter for Artificial Intelligence and the Metaverse, in addition to the periodic reports on the Organization’s work.
The second consultative meeting of ICESCO will precede the Executive Council session under the theme: “From Quality to Excellence: ICESCO’s New Strategy.” This meeting, which brings together the Organization’s General Directorate and representatives of the National Commissions for Education, Science, and Culture, aims to identify the priorities and needs of Member States, and devise action plans and programs that align with these priorities and needs. The Meeting will include a presentation on the challenges and opportunities facing the Islamic world, brainstorming sessions and idea generation with several themes, including “Let’s Shape ICESCO’s Future Together: The ICESCO You Want,” “Innovation in ICESCO’s Strategy,” “Major Global Events Affecting Member States,” “Building Scenarios and Formulating Common Strategic Directions for the Future of the Islamic World,” and “Inter-generational Dialogue.”
In the presence of His Excellency Macky Sall, President of the Republic of Senegal, Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), participated in the opening ceremony of the twelfth session of the National Festival of Arts and Culture, in Fatick, Senegal. The ceremony also saw the presence of Mr. Mohammed Mehdi Bensaid, Minister of Youth, Culture and Communication of the Kingdom of Morocco, which is the guest of honor, along with a number of ministers and representatives of diplomatic missions and international organizations.
During the grand opening ceremony, organized on Monday evening (January 8, 2024), His Excellency President Macky Sall welcomed the participants, stressing the importance of culture, heritage and arts in achieving sustainable development, and announced the inauguration of the International Exhibition and Museum of the Prophet’s Seerah and Islamic Civilization, which is supervised by the Muslim World League, in Dakar, scheduled on February 5, 2024.
In his address, Dr. AlMalik expressed his great pleasure at participating in the festival, which aims to promote cultural heritage, noting the efforts of President Macky Sall to develop the economy, promote entrepreneurship among youth and women, and develop a model for peace, social cohesion and civilizational dialogue, in order to consolidate the values of coexistence, peace and stability in the African continent and worldwide.
At the end of his address, ICESCO Director-General congratulated Senegal on its election as a member of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, underscoring ICESCO’s keenness to strengthen partnership with its Member States, including the Republic of Senegal.
In the address of the Kingdom of Morocco, the festival guest of honor, Mr. Mohammed Mehdi Bensaid highlighted the deeply-rooted historical relations between Morocco and Senegal, stressing the role of culture and heritage in preserving African identity, especially among young people.
It is noteworthy that the current session of the festival, which spans over four days, is held in Fatick, the birthplace of the President of the Republic of Senegal, under the theme, ‘Macky, Arts and Heritage’. The program includes a national book fair, lectures on culture and arts, forums and workshops, in addition to a number of artistic and folklore performances to introduce the rich cultural heritage of Senegal.
The program also features artistic and folklore performances from the Kingdom of Morocco, the festival guest of honor.
Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), received Mr. Khalid Salim Bamakhalif, Ambassador of the Sultanate of Oman to the Kingdom of Morocco, and together they discussed ways to enhance the outstanding partnership between ICESCO and the Sultanate in the educational, scientific and cultural fields.
At the outset of the meeting, held on Thursday (January 4, 2024), at ICESCO’s headquarters, in Rabat, Dr. AlMalik congratulated Ambassador Bamakhalif on his appointment as Ambassador of the Sultanate of Oman to Morocco, wishing him every success in his mission.
Dr. AlMalik also reviewed the salient aspects of the Organization’s vision and its strategic orientations, which are based on openness and cooperation with all parties for the benefit of Member States and Muslim communities around the world, stressing ICESCO’s keenness to promote foresight culture, consolidate the values of peace, civilizational dialogue and coexistence, build women and youth capacities, and encourage Member States to invest in space sciences and support its efforts geared towards leveraging modern technologies to achieve sustainable development.
The meeting, which saw the presence of many heads of sector and department at ICESCO, touched on the major activities implemented within the framework of the outstanding partnership between the Organization and the Sultanate of Oman, and the upcoming period cooperation, in coordination with the Omani National Commission for Education, Culture and Science, particularly the Conference of Ministers of Education in the Islamic World, due to be hosted by the Sultanate, in 2024, and the agreement to establish ICESCO Chair for Artificial Intelligence Ethics at the University of Technology and Applied Sciences in Muscat, due to be signed at the upcoming Executive Council of ICESCO in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
For his part, Ambassador Bamakhalif commended ICESCO’s roles in supporting its Member States in its areas of competence, hailing the qualitative leap the Organization has witnessed over the past four years, and the recruitment of competent staff, who have strengthened its presence at the international level.
Afterwards, ICESCO Director-General took the Omani ambassador on a tour of the Organization’s headquarters, and the International Exhibition and Museum of the Prophet’s Seerah and Islamic Civilization, currently housed at ICESCO’s headquarters, in partnership with the Muslim World League and the Mohammadia League of Scholars.
The Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) received the second cohort of trainees from Mohammed bin Salman ‘MiSK’ Foundation, which includes 10 young men and women, who will spend a ten-week professional training period at ICESCO’s departments, sectors and centers, within the framework of cooperation and partnership between the Organization and the Foundation, in coordination with the Saudi National Commission for Education, Culture and Science.
The intensive training, prepared by the various departments, sectors and centers of ICESCO, aims to develop the trainees’ capacities, introduce them to the work environment of international organizations and institutions, and provide the participants with new experiences and knowledge likely to refine their skills and professional capacities, help them acquire leadership skills in the fields of education, science, culture and communication, under the supervision of the Organization’s experts, and discover the Organization’s activities, programs and initiatives.
During the reception, which took place on Tuesday (January 3, 2024), at ICESCO headquarters, in Rabat, some of the Organization’s officials reviewed the history and areas of competence of ICESCO as well as its major initiatives, programs and projects aimed at developing the fields of education, science and culture in its Member States, within the framework of its vision and strategic orientations, which prioritize youth as the locomotive for development.
It is worth noting that the first cohort of MiSK trainees joined ICESCO, in March 2023, and received a ten-week intensive training in the Organization’s sectors, departments, and centers, during which they presented their ideas and visions, and proposed a set of projects and programs to develop the fields of education, science, and culture.
The “Empowerment through Education” activity has been launched in the governorate of Lahij, Republic of Yemen, and will be implemented in five (05) Yemeni governorates to train and qualify families taking care of orphans, as part of the school reintegration project for out-of-school girls in Yemen, in accordance with the agreement signed between the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), the King Salman Center for Humanitarian Aid and Relief (KSrelief), the Yemeni Ministry of Education and the Benevolence Coalition for Humanitarian Relief (BCHR) Foundation.
The aim of the Empowerment through Education is to help families caring for orphan girls by providing them with vital life and vocational skills that enable them to become self-sufficient, thus contributing to the reintegration of girls in the educational process. The program benefits 280 trainees through 14 training sessions in various fields such as sewing, embroidery, perfumery, technology, photography and food industries, in the governorates of Lahij, Abyan, Marib, Hadramaout and Socotra.
At the launch of the activity, on Wednesday December 27, 2023, Mr. Saleh Al Dhaibani, Director of the King Salman Center for Humanitarian Aid and Relief’s Office in Aden, stressed that the project to reintegrate out-of-school girls is a crucial project to help girls return to school through various activities, including the rehabilitation of schools and alternative classrooms, teacher training and family support. In her statement, Ms. Imane Al Zubairi, Director of the Yemeni project for the reintegration of out-of-school girls, said that the project aims to provide educational opportunities for out-of-school girls while empowering them economically and socially, stressing that it has yielded significant positive results in the targeted governorates.
Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), convened with 120 master’s students in International Law and Diplomatic Advocacy at the Faculty of Legal, Economic, and Social Sciences in Ain Chock, Hassan II University in Casablanca, Morocco. The meeting took place at ICESCO Headquarters and was attended by the dean of the faculty, the master’s program coordinator, faculty members, along with several sector heads, department and center directors at ICESCO.
During his opening remarks at the meeting on Wednesday 27 December 2023, Mr. Mohamed Hedi Shili, Director of the Legal Affairs and International Standards Department at ICESCO, welcomed the research students and underscored the importance of professions and disciplines associated with international law as catalysts for the functioning of international organizations. Mr. Shili highlighted that this meeting marks a new milestone in ICESCO’s commitment to fostering collaboration with universities.
Afterward, Dr. AlMalik reviewed the main aspects of the key developments that ICESCO has undergone over the past four years, in terms of organizational and administrative structure, strategic and forward-looking vision, and openness to Member and non-Member States. Additionally, he pointed out the notable advancement in ICESCO’s activities, attributing it to the recruitment of experienced experts and young talents from 35 countries to work or undergo training at the Organization.
Dr. Almalik explained that ICESCO’s new vision embraces collaboration with universities and higher education institutions, recognizing them as incubators for creativity and innovation. Furthermore, he affirmed the Organization’s unwavering dedication to advancing fields of education, science, culture, heritage preservation, and promoting peace and security. In this context, ICESCO has launched and implemented various ongoing programs and initiatives and established scientific chairs in esteemed international universities that have yielded valuable research and studies.
For his part, Dr. Abdellatif Komat, Dean of the Faculty of Legal, Economic, and Social Sciences in Ain Chock, expressed appreciation for ICESCO’s noteworthy efforts in furthering the fields of science, education, and culture. He commended the Organization’s initiative to offer students opportunities to understand its work and highlighted its focus on the training and development of youth skills.
Subsequently, the students were allowed to pose their questions to Dr. AlMalik, who provided responses and confirmed that the Organization has established numerous partnerships with various international entities to contribute to sustainable development. He reiterated the ongoing focus on foresight, positioning youth and women as pivotal elements in future plans and emphasizing the importance of digitization and leveraging artificial intelligence for technological progress and digital transformation.
Dr. Komat and the faculty members presented shields from Hassan II University and the Faculty of Legal, Economic, and Social Sciences in Ain Chock to Dr. AlMalik as an appreciation for steering ICESCO and supporting its Member States in their respective fields of expertise.
By the end of the meeting, the students and faculty members visited the International Exhibition and Museum on the Prophet’s Seerah and Islamic Civilization, currently hosted at the ICESCO Headquarters, as part of the partnership between the Organization and the Muslim World League and the Mohammadia League of Scholars.
His Excellency Mohamed Ould Cheikh Ghazouani, President of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, received Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), on Thursday (December 21, 2023), at the Presidential Palace, in Nouakchott, one day before the close of Nouakchott Celebration as the Culture Capital in the Islamic world.
At the beginning of the meeting, the ICESCO Director-General expressed his great thanks and gratitude to His Excellency the President of Mauritania for granting his high patronage to this year-long celebration, which featured a wide range of cultural and artistic activities, and the organization of international conferences and workshops, adding glow to the city of Nouakchott, which demonstrated its ancient, unique and diverse cultural heritage.
He also commended the efforts of all parties that contributed to the success of the celebration, which is implemented within the framework of ICESCO’s program to celebrate the cities of the Islamic world, particularly the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports and the Mauritanian National Commission for Education, Science and Culture.
For his part, His Excellency the President of Mauritania hailed the roles of ICESCO and its remarkable achievements in recent years, especially in safeguarding and promoting the Islamic world heritage, praising the inscription of the Mauritanian Mahdara on the Islamic World Heritage List, and calling on ICESCO to pay special attention to the promotion of the Mahdara as a unique human heritage.
Dr. AlMalik welcomed this call, indicating that Mauritania is one of the countries that has inscribed most historical sites and cultural elements on ICESCO’s Islamic World Heritage List. Besides, he reiterated the Organization’s willingness to further develop the outstanding partnership with the Mauritanian parties in the fields of education, science and culture.
The meeting saw the presence of Mr. Mokhtar Ould Ajay, Minister in charge of the Cabinet of the Presidency, Mr. Ahmed Sid Ahmed Dié, Minister of Culture, Youth, Sports and Relations with Parliament, and Mr. Mohamed Sidi Abdallah, Secretary-General of the National Commission for Education, Culture and Science, as well as Dr. Mohamed Zinelabidine, Head of ICESCO Culture and Communication Sector, and Dr. Nami Salehi, Supervisor of ICESCO Center of Heritage in the Islamic World.
The Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) and its affiliated Federation of the Universities of the Islamic World (FUIW) held the International Conference on the Role of Women Leaderships in Empowering Women in the Digital Field, under the patronage and in the presence of Dr. Maryam Fadel Al-Dah, the First Lady of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania. The event aims at exploring ways to enhance women’s capacities in the digital transformation and economy, and sharing the relevant best practices.
The opening of the conference, which kicked off on Thursday (December 21, 2023), in Nouakchott, witnessed a high-level participation, including first ladies, ministers, women leaders and experts in the fields of technology, innovation and digital transformation, most notably Ms. Marieme Faye Sall, First Lady of the Republic of Senegal.
The conference began with the recitation of verses from the Holy Quran, followed by a documentary about the Mauritanian experience and efforts to enhance digital transformation through the establishment of a number of bodies and platforms to protect data and encourage innovation.
In her address, the First Lady of Mauritania stressed that the advancement of societies and the achievement of development are linked to the empowerment of women and the achievement of equality in all fields, stating that additional efforts must be made in the field of education, training, scientific research and innovation to ensure women access to digital and entrepreneurial fields to which the conference’s sessions and discussions will contribute significantly.
In his address, Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, ICESCO Director-General, FUIW Secretary-General, underscored that empowerment is an act that anticipates the future, identifies needs, determines priorities, predicts risks and incorporates new developments, adding that the digital transformation has become the key to modern areas, which all women leaders must be equipped with.
“Women worldwide have achieved a significant leap in digital entrepreneurship, which would open new prospects for startups. However, there are many challenges facing women on the path to their digital empowerment, particularly the lack of innovation, the limited ability to develop new ideas and projects, lack of knowledge about the society’s needs, and the poor financial and administrative awareness” underscored Dr. AlMalik.
For her part, Ms. Fatima bint Abdelmalek, President of the Nouakchott Regional Council, reaffirmed that the conference is in line with the orientations of the Mauritanian government, which endeavors to integrate women into the economic sector and provide them with job opportunities in the digital field.
In his address, Mr. Mohamed Abdallah Louli, Minister of Mauritanian Digital Transformation, Innovation and Modernization of Administration, highlighted the major objectives and axes of the digital transformation strategy in the Republic to provide an appropriate environment for women in the digital field. For her part, Ms. Safiya bint Intah, Minister of Mauritanian Social Affairs, Children and Family, indicated that nearly four thousand projects of women have been funded and more than five thousand girls have been trained in the digital field, in addition to a number of other development programs.
Following the opening session, the Mauritanian First Lady and the Director-General of ICESCO along with the conference guests visited the exhibition, in which the entities and companies operating in the field of digital transformation in Mauritania provided explanations about their efforts to enhance the role of women in digital transformation and provide them with job opportunities.
Afterwards, the conference started its working sessions. The first session discussed ‘Digitization and gender: towards bridging the gender gap in the field of technology’. The second session addressed the topic of ‘Digitization: challenges and opportunities’ while the third session tackled ‘Women for information technology: the path toward success stories of women leaders in digital field’.
Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), visited the 3rd edition of “Joussour” Exhibition, being held in Casablanca, from 13 to 31 December 2023, by the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah, and Guidance of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in collaboration with the Ministry of Habous and Islamic Affairs of the Kingdom of Morocco and the Hassan II Mosque Foundation. This exhibition comes after its first edition in Thailand and the second in Albania.
During the visit, the exhibition organizers provided Dr. AlMalik with a detailed explanation of the rare books and manuscripts displayed at the exhibition. They also presented a hall illustrating the historical journey of Hajj throughout the ages, the role of the King Fahd Glorious Qur’an Printing Complex, Library of the Great Mosque of Mecca, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s efforts in serving Muslims worldwide, as well as a pavilion dedicated to highlighting the historical relations between Saudi Arabia and Morocco.
ICESCO Director-General commended the “Joussour” exhibition, affirming that all three editions of the Exhibition demonstrates Saudi Arabia’s efforts in building bridges with various countries worldwide, in line with the Kingdom’s vision, under the leadership of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and the Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, Prime Minister, promoting openness and communication with all, in consolidation of the values of coexistence and global peace.
Dr. AlMalik commended the Exhibition for showcasing the depth of historical relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Kingdom of Morocco. He also noted the importance of its presentations on Quranic competitions, care for Quran, in addition to historical, archaeological, and civilizational mosques, as well as rare manuscripts, serving as rich material for researchers. Moreover, the virtual Hajj journey allowed visitors to explore the rituals of Hajj’ and their performance, and a virtual visit to Mecca.
at the close of his visit, the Director-General extended gratitude to the exhibition organizers for the invitation and appreciated the initiatives by the Saudi Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah, and Guidance to present the true image of our compassionate religion, promoting coexistence, love, and peace.