Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), and Mr. Furqat Sadiqov, Deputy Foreign Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan, explored Tuesday, August 4 the cooperation prospects between the Organization and the country in the coming period.

The meeting came amid the celebration of “Bukhara as the 2020 Islamic World Capital of Culture for the Asian region.” Mr. Ulugbek Maksudov, Ambassador of Uzbekistan to Saudi Arabia, and several directors of sectors in ICESCO attended today’s meeting via videoconferencing.

Dr. AlMalik reaffirmed ICESCO’s keenness to develop special cooperation with Uzbekistan, a country with a rich civilization and remarkable contributions to Islamic history in the fields of education, science, and culture.

The DG highlighted ICESCO’s substantial initiatives and programs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. AlMalik reaffirmed that the initiatives support the most vulnerable Member States in mitigating the impact of the pandemic.

One notable example is the Comprehensive Humanitarian Coalition Initiative, which many countries and international organizations and institutions joined and supported, seizing the opportunity to invite Uzbekistan to join the Coalition.

The Deputy Foreign Minister commended ICESCO’s efforts to support its Member States in the light of the current pandemic. Mr. Sadiqov also set forth multiple proposals from the Uzbek Ministry of Culture and the International Islamic Academy of Uzbekistan to promote a partnership between the Republic of Uzbekistan and ICESCO.

The proposals included organizing international festivals in Uzbekistan under the aegis of ICESCO. It also listed cooperating with ICESCO to hold an international conference on tangible and intangible heritage in the Islamic world in 2022 in Bukhara. ICESCO and the Academy would also develop workshops and training sessions, particularly in teaching Arabic.

The DG welcomed these proposals and reaffirmed the special attention the Organization pays to all the recommended topics, especially the conference on heritage in the Islamic world. Dr. AlMalik also noted that ICESCO has inscribed many heritage sites on the Islamic World Heritage List and has recently received new applications to inscribe more. ICESCO’s DG invited Uzbekistan to submit inscription files to the Organization to inscribe its historic sites.

At the end of the meeting, the two parties agreed to work together to advance the true image of the Islamic civilization and culture, which call for coexistence and dialogue.