OIC focusing on improving quality of curriculum to transform the universities of the member states into center of excellence
President Dr. Arif Alvi has emphasized on a combination of morality and knowledge for Muslims to grow in the world. Addressing the inaugural session of the Global Al-Farabi Forum in Islamabad, he said the future looks to Muslims, but they need to work hard and ensure that people are educated and healthy. The President mentioned that the COMSTECH is the only major institution in OIC, established for the socio-economic development of the Ummah through the application of science and technology. He urged the OIC member states to join hands with this prestigious institution and work together for the renaissance of the Ummah. He said that COMSTECH is only institution of OIC hosted by Pakistan and lauded COMSTECH efforts for promotion of scientific cooperation and the uplift of the OIC countries. He made these remarks in his address to the inaugural session of the Global A-Farabi forum organized jointly by COMSTECH and the government of Kazakhstan. He added that we should go to the principles of Al-Farabi, which are quite relevant even today. He said the world is not looking for morality, but Muslims are looking for morality, and they can bring about a change with the strength of ethics and knowledge. He regretted that Muslims are in misery in Kashmir, Palestine and Rohingya. The President said Muslims need to move along with the fast pace of science and technology. He said Artificial Intelligence has alarmingly increased the pace of knowledge. He urged the Ministerial Standing Committee on Scientific and Technological Cooperation of the OIC to play its role in imparting contemporary knowledge to youth of Muslim Ummah. Praising Muslim philosophers, the President said it was the Muslim era, which brought the old Greek philosophy to the modern world.
The opening session was also addressed by the Coordinator General COMSTECH, Prof. Dr. M. Iqbal Choudhary, the Assistant Secretary General of OIC, Ambassador Askar Mussinov, Dr. Darkhan Kydyrali, President International Turkic Academy and the Kazakhstan Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Berik Aryn. All the speakers emphasized the need of the advancement of science and technology in the OIC member states and resolved to follow the tradition of the renowned Muslim scholar Abu-Nasr Al-Farabi to recapture the golden era of the Ummah.
Speaking on the occasion, Assistant Secretary General for Science and Technology Affairs within the Asian Group OIC Ambassador Askar Mussinov said Islam gives great importance to knowledge and science as its first injunctions begin with “Iqra”. He said contribution of Muslims scholars to the modern science is enormous and pioneered in many branches of science.
The two-day conference is being organized in celebration of the 1150th anniversary of Abu Nasr Al-Farabi, the great Muslim philosopher and scientist who hailed from the lands, now are part of Kazakhstan. Over 120 scholars from Pakistan, United Kingdom, Kazakhstan, Cameroon, Nepal, Somalia and Sudan are participating in this event. The lectures would cover different aspects of the multi-faceted contributions of Al-Farabi as a philosopher and a scientist. The conference has five working sessions with lectures, followed by a closing session with a panel discussion titled “Science and the Islamic World-A philosophical assessment”, with a focus on identifying the intellectual and physical impetus required for scientific uplift in the Islamic world of today.