The SWOT Outlook 2012 is the second issue of the SESRIC recent series on the subject whose first issue was published in 2011. Following the analytical approach of SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) method, the profile of OIC Member Countries, as a group, in different fields and sectors are presented in a comparative manner with the groups of developed and other developing countries as well as the world average.

The SWOT Outlook is a new contribution by SESRIC to the efforts of the OIC Member Countries toward enhancing the level of their cooperation and integration as well as the level of their competitiveness, as a group, at both the regional and global levels. It provides most relevant statistical data and background information that would make the OIC Member Countries better informed of their collective potentials and needs and, thus, facilitate their elaboration on cooperation projects and integration schemes.

The issue of health and development of modern and sustainable health systems has recently gained greater importance and attention in many developing countries as a major driver of socio-economic progress where more resources have been invested in this sector than ever being before. Today, people are healthier, wealthier and live longer than 30 years ago. However, while the progress achieved over the years in health sector has remained highly concentrated in the developed countries, many developing and least-developed countries are still seriously lagging behind. This is particularly true in the regions of South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa where health care coverage and health services remained significantly poor in many countries including most of OIC Member Countries in these regions.

Today pharmaceuticals have become an indispensable part of health care system around the globe. Historically pharmaceuticals have played a vital role in the human development by improving the quality of life and reducing the time spent in the hospitals. Today, pharmaceutical industry is considered to be one of the largest and rapidly growing global industries. However, despite the extraordinary global achievements in this important industry, it’s a harsh reality that every year millions of people die across the world, mostly in low income developing countries, due to unavailability and inaccessibility of necessary medicines.

Maternal and Newborn Health (MNH) basically refers to health of women and babies during pregnancy, childbirth and after childbirth. Provision of quality care during this period is very critical for the health and very survival of mother and infant. According to the latest estimates, around half a million maternal and about four million newborn deaths are mainly caused by the lack of quality antenatal care, safe and clean delivery and post-natal care for mother and infant.

Polio or Poliomyelitis is a communicable disease caused by a virus that lives in throat and intestinal tract. Poliovirus attacks the nervous system and in some cases can paralyze the victim instantly. It spreads rapidly especially in those communities that are living in very poor hygienic and sanitation conditions. People of all ages can get infected by the Polio; however children under five years of age are the most likely to be infected by the virus. Though polio is not curable, it can be prevented especially through childhood vaccination.

“Education and Scientific Development in OIC Member Countries” gives an overall snapshot of the current situation of education in the OIC member countries through analyzing the major education indicators such as literacy rates, enrolment ratios, teacher-student ratio, and government expenditures on education.

The global financial crisis which broke out in 2007 and was considered by many economists worldwide as the worst ever since the Great Depression of 1930s is a crisis on a global scale triggered by the illiquidity of the US banking system caused by the overvaluation of assets. Still a top item on many governments’ agenda, the crisis had immense devastating results both on the public and private sector.

Today we are living in an era of speed due to the technological progress, particularly in information and communication technology (ICT) tools, which has a deep impact on each and every process in both public and private sector. This impact has been felt even in the most remote geographical areas of the World due to the widespread use of ICT tools. These technologies are adopted by the governments to transform the public policy, processes and functions to better serve the needs of their citizens.

The Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) added the issue of enhancing economic and commercial cooperation among its member countries to its agenda shortly after its establishment in 1969. Considerable efforts have been so far spent at various OIC levels to develop means and modalities of joint cooperative action in this regard. Two OIC plans of action for economic and commercial cooperation were adopted by the Islamic Summit in 1981 and 1994, respectively. The main objective of these plans is to develop a structure and mechanism for economic and commercial cooperation among the OIC member countries and help them face the ever-changing global economic conjuncture.

The 57 OIC member countries are dispersed over a large geographical region in four continents, extending from Albania (Europe) in the north to Mozambique (Africa) in the south, and from Guyana (Latin America) in the west to Indonesia (Asia) in the east. As such, the OIC countries as a group account for one sixth of the world land area and more than one fifth of its population. They constitute a substantial part of the developing countries and, as a group, are well-endowed with a high economic potential in different fields and sectors such as energy and mining (mainly oil and gas), agriculture and arable land, human resources, and a vast strategic trading region.

In the rapidly changing world of today, with sweeping developments taking place in all facets of life, education is fundamental to the future prospects of most of the developing countries. Clearly, a good education policy must extend far beyond formal education, encompassing areas such as social policy, health policy and economic policy as well. Education does, however, remain at the core of human capital formation. The benefits of a good quality education not only provide returns to the individuals educated, but it also helps in alleviating poverty, facilitates economic growth and brings other social benefits to the society.

Microfinance has been developed around the world as a popular poverty reduction strategy. Many pioneering MFIs all over the world have demonstrated that these institutions can deliver financial services to the poor that otherwise would not have access to these services. Various impact studies have reported the successful outcomes of microfinance programs in improving the incomes and reducing the vulnerability of the poor.

The country profiles obtained from the Environmental Sustainability Index Report (ESI) 2005 are snapshots of each individual country, reflecting its performance within the 2005 Environmental Sustainability Index. In the box in the upper left corner, the ESI scores, ESI ranks, average ESI score of the peer group and data coverage are presented. The graph on the upper right corner demonstrates the scores of the 5 core components namely, Environmental Systems, Reducing Stresses, Reducing Human Vulnerability, Social and Institutional Capacity, and Global Stewardship. The graphical representation indicates a higher performance if the country’s score is closer to the vertices of the graph.

The country profiles obtained from the Pilot 2006 Environmental Performance Index (EPI) are snapshots of each individual country, reflecting its performance within the Pilot 2006 Environmental Performance Index.

This study presents a brief assessment of science and technology (S&T) indicators for the OIC member countries in comparison to the rest of the world by using the available data collected from the relevant international sources.

Needless to say, civilization began with agriculture, when people began to settle and grow their own food. Historically, agriculture has been playing a crucial role in human welfare ever since –providing a wide range of agricultural products in almost all aspects of life and being a key economic driver– and continues to remain as a major field in many parts of the world today, especially in developing countries. Therefore, it is obvious that effective agricultural management and policymaking can have a considerable effect on the development process of these countries. To ensure that management and provide data for those policies, agricultural statistics are essential.