The headquarters of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) hosted a ministerial roundtable to discuss the broad lines and agree on the implementation mechanisms of the initiative of launching the Support Fund for Talents in the Islamic World, as proposed by H.E. President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi of the Arab Republic of Egypt, during the 14th Session of the General Conference in Cairo. The Roundtable discussed the various aspects of the initiative to ensure the best outcomes.

The Roundtable, held on Tuesday, December 20, 2022, saw high-level participation, including Dr. Ayman Ashour, Minister of Higher Education and scientific Research, President of the National Commission for Education, Science and Culture of the Arab Republic of Egypt; Dr. Younes Skouri, Minister of Economic Integration, Small Enterprises, Employment and Competencies of the Kingdom of Morocco; Dr. Patrick Mouguiama-Daouda, Minister of Higher Education, Scientific Research, Technology Transfer and National Education, the Gabonese Republic; Ms. Amna bint Salim Al Balushi, Secretary-General of the Omani National Commission for Education, Science and Culture; and a representative of the Moroccan Ministry of Higher Education.

At the beginning of the event, Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, ICESCO Director-General, reiterated his thanks and appreciation for H.E. President El-Sisi for proposing the creation of this fund, noting that ICESCO had held multiple talks with the Member States which welcomed this initiative, which is in harmony with ICESCO’s new vision and strategic orientations to support innovation in the Islamic world.

In his address, Dr. Ayman Ashour expressed his thanks to the Director-General and the Organization’s working team for the achievements scored over the course of the past three years. He then gave a presentation on the Fund Initiative, stating that Egypt is eager to share its experience in setting up such funds with the Islamic world. He noted that the Republic established a fund in 2019 for sponsoring innovators and talented people by virtue of a presidential decision, a fund which has achieved great success.

Moreover, the Egyptian Minister stated that the initiative of President El-Sisi also includes offering 100 scholarships to the Islamic world students to study in Egyptian universities that are affiliated with the Ministry of Higher Education, 100 scholarships from Al-Azhar University and 50 scholarships from private universities.

For his part, Dr. Younes Skouri, welcomed the initiative which he described as pioneering, reaffirming the support of the Kingdom of Morocco for such a work, given that it targets a category with no dedicated programs. Dr. Patrick Mouguiama-Daouda commended the Fund’s areas of action, which include promoting gender equality and supporting talented people in the field of innovation in relation to issues of climate change. Likewise, Dr. Amna Al-Balushi stated that this initiative is in line with the interest the Sultanate of Oman accords to talented people, siezing the opportunity to give an overview of the “Tharwa” program, overseen by the Omani Ministry of Education. The Representative of the Moroccan Ministry of Higher Education presented a number of proposals to enrich the initiative.

At the close of the Roundtable, the Director-General underlines that all ideas and proposals put forth during the roundtable will be elaborated before submitting this initiative to the Executive Council. He added that following that, ICESCO will prepare the final version of the Fund, set out its legal and administrative framework and finalize its working mechanism along with all the relevant matters prior to submitting them to the 2023 session of the Executive Council.