The 15^th Session of the UN-OIC General Meeting on Cooperation was held at Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, on 18-20 July 2022. The meeting brought together high-level representatives from the Secretariats of the United Nations (UN) and the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC), as well as their specialized agencies and institutions.

The meeting was co-chaired by H.E. Amb. Tarig Ali BAKHIET, OIC Assistant Secretary General for Humanitarian, Cultural and Social Affairs and Special Envoy of the OIC Secretary General for Afghanistan, and H.E. Amb. Khaled KHIARI, Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs of the United Nations. SESRIC participated in the meeting with a delegation headed by H.E. Mr. Nebil DABUR, Director General, and composed of Mr. Fadi Abdullah FARASIN, Assistant Director General and Mr. Onur ÇAĞLAR, Director of Training and Technical Cooperation.

Following the statements of the co-Chairs at the Plenary Session, H.E. Mr. Nebil DABUR, Director General of SESRIC, addressed the Meeting where he briefed the representatives of both the UN and OIC institutions on SESRIC’s strident efforts towards the implementation of the Matrix of Joint Activities between the UN and the OIC that was agreed upon during the last meeting in Rabat, Kingdom of Morocco in July 2018. Mr. DABUR emphasized SESRIC’s readiness and willingness to further enhance its cooperation with the relevant UN agencies and contribute to the formulation of the new Matrix that will shape cooperation and partnerships between the UN agencies and OIC institutions in the upcoming two years. He also stressed the importance of promoting new ideas and perspectives to enhance and better institutionalize the existing cooperation between the UN and the OIC.

Following the Plenary Session, the work continued with the three working groups on Political Issues, Cooperation on Economic and Scientific Issues, and Cooperation on Cultural, Social and Humanitarian Issues. During the meetings of the wotking groups, relevant representatives of the UN agencies and the OIC institutions reviewed the progress of joint cooperation in these areas and deliberated on new activities and projects for the upcoming tow-years UN-OIC cooperation.

The meeting concluded with the reaffirmation of commitment by the two sides (the UN and OIC agencies and institutions) to work together to address the global and regional challenges through sharing experiences and best practices and deepening strategic dialogue, conducting joint research and establishing common approaches.

The meeting agreed on a Matrix of Joint Activities between the OIC and the UN for the upcoming two years. It was also agreed upon to hold the 16th Session of the General Meeting on Cooperation in 2024 at the premises of the Islamic Organisation for Food Security (IOFS), a specialized institution of the OIC based in Nur-Sultan, Republic of Kazakhstan.

The UN-OIC General Meeting on Cooperation is held biannually to promote and enhance cooperation between the UN and the OIC in areas such as peace and security, countering violent extremism, human rights, women empowerment, education, humanitarian assistance, health, environment and climate change, among others. Each session reviews the level of cooperation between the UN and the OIC since the previous meeting and discusses ways and means of reinforcing cooperation and coordination in the political, economic, social, humanitarian, cultural and scientific spheres.

Photos