NNA - The preparatory meeting for the fifteenth session of the Islamic Summit Conference commenced on Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in Banjul, the capital of the Republic of the Gambia, where the Islamic Summit Conference will be held on May 4th and 5th, 2024.
The meeting aims to discuss the documents of the session and present its report to the meeting of the Foreign Ministers' Council, which, in turn, will present a report to the Islamic Summit Conference.
At the beginning of the meeting, His Excellency the Advisor at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for International Multilateral Affairs, Dr. Abdullah Al Tayer delivered a speech on behalf of his country as the Chairman of the Islamic Summit Conference in its fourteenth session.
He reviewed the valuable efforts, initiatives, and achievements in the economic, scientific, activities, and numerous conferences in various sectors organized by the Kingdom during its presidency of the previous session, expressing his support for the efforts of the General Secretariat of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
On his part, Mr. Lang Yabou, The Permanent Secretary of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation of the Gambia, expressed, on behalf of his country, which hosts the fifteenth session of the Islamic Summit Conference, his welcome to the delegates of the member states, confirming that his country is exerting its utmost efforts to ensure the success of the session held under the theme "Enhancing Unity and Solidarity through Dialogue for Sustainable Development."
OIC Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Mr. Yousef AlDobeay, delivered a speech in which he extended his sincere congratulations to the Republic of the Gambia on assuming the presidency of this session, once again thanking the Gambian government for the excellent arrangements made to host this summit.
He also expressed deep appreciation and gratitude to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for its valuable and appreciated efforts and initiatives during its presidency of the fourteenth Islamic Summit, reaffirming its strong commitment to joint Islamic action and the OIC's mission.
AlDobeay praised all the support provided by the Kingdom to the OIC as the host country, under the auspices and keenness of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and His Royal Highness Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman.
Assistant Secretary-General clarified that this summit, held at a critical juncture witnessing developments of great importance for various issues on the agenda of the OIC, foremost among them the Palestinian issue, the central issue of the organization.
"The Summit will discuss, in addition to the summit documents, issues of peace, security, societies, and Muslim minorities in non-member states, as well as legal, humanitarian, social, cultural, economic, scientific, technological, media, administrative, and financial matters," he said.
The Banjul Summit represents a unique opportunity for OIC member states to strengthen their cooperation towards enhancing joint Islamic action and engaging in constructive dialogue on global issues and challenges facing the Islamic nation.
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