OIC participates in Islamic Bureau of Environment meeting in Rabat
Al-Othaimeen discusses MoU with KAICIID delegation
JEDDAH, May 10: The 4th meeting of the Islamic Executive Bureau of Environment (IEBE) was held in Rabat on May 10. The meeting, which is preparatory to the 7th Islamic Conference of Environment Ministers (ICEM) scheduled to be held in Rabat on Oct 25-26 2017, was attended by the Ministers of Morocco, Qatar and Cameroon.
The Executive Bureau meeting was co-chaired by Dr Khalil bin Mosleh Al-Thaqafi, President of the General Authority of Meteorology and Environmental Protection of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Ambassador Muhammad Naeem Khan, Assistant Secretary-General (S&T), OIC General Secretariat and Dr Abdulaziz Othman Altwaijri, Director-General ISESCO.
Besides reviewing the progress made in implementing the recommendations and resolutions of the 6th ICEM, the meeting approved a number of proposals for the consideration of the OIC Ministers for Environment during forthcoming 7th ICEM in October 2017.
The ministers emphasized the importance of increasing intra-OIC collaboration to strengthen the capabilities of the member states enabling them to fulfill their obligations under the Paris Agreement that entered into force last year.
Issues
On behalf of the OIC SecretaryGeneral, Ambassador Naeem Khan underscored the importance that OIC attaches to issues pertaining to environmental protection, climate change and water, food and energy security of the member states.
He said that due to climate change, including recurrent floods, rise in sea levels, higher average temperatures and higher frequency of droughts, the OIC member states face enormous adverse consequences impeding their ability to promote sustainable growth and development of their people.
OIC accords high priority to the issue of sustainable development, environmental degradation and climate change in the member states. OIC institutions are playing their role in promoting regional cooperation for sustainable development.
Meanwhile, the Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Dr Yousef AlOthaimeen, received in his office on May 9, the Secretary-General of the King Abdullah International Center for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue (KAICIID), Faysal bin Muammar, and his accompanying delegation. The two sides exchanged views on the phenomenon of Islamophobia and ways of confronting it and on inter-religious dialogue especially in regions witnessing acts of violence with religious background, such as in Central African Republic, Nigeria and Myanmar.
The two sides stressed on the importance of continuing the close collaboration between the OIC and
the KAICIID in facing these issues and establishing the principles of dialogue, tolerance and moderation.
Within this framework, the two sides agreed to activate the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that was signed between the OIC and the KAICIID and draft a joint plan of action for programs and activities addressing the phenomenon of Islamophobia and confronting it as well as programs for boosting inter-religious dialogue for this year.
Session
In another report, a high-level delegation from the OIC General Secretariat, led by Ambassador Abdullah Alem, Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs,
took part in the 6th session of the High-level Joint Commission of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the League of Arab States (LAS) in charge of following up on the implementation of the terms of the cooperation agreement between the OIC and the LAS.
The meeting, held at the headquarters of the LAS General Secretariat in Cairo on May 8-10, discussed issues of common interest and ways to contribute to the resolution of crises facing some states in the region, cooperation in the areas of sustainable development, women, family, childhood, disarmament, cooperation for election observation and a number of other issues of interest to the two organizations.
Meanwhile, the Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Dr Yousef A. Al-Othaimeen met on May 10 His Excellency Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, President of Equatorial Guinea, in his place of residence in Jeddah during the President’s official visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The two parties exchanges views on international issues, particularly in the African continent. The Secretary-General underscored the OIC’s interest in encouraging and supporting investment opportunities in Africa. For his part, President Mbasogo highlighted his country’s keenness, as a non-member state of the OIC, to develop relations with OIC member states.