His Excellency Dr. Noor-ul-Haq Qadri, Federal Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, welcomed His Excellency Prof. Koutoub Moustapha Sano, Secretary General of the International Islamic Fiqh Academy (IIFA), on Monday, 18 Sha’ban 1443H corresponding to 21 March 2022G, at the headquarters of the ministry in Islamabad, Islamic Republic of Pakistan

At the beginning of the meeting, His Excellency the Minister expressed his great happiness at the visit of His Excellency and the delegation accompanying him to the Ministry, praising the outstanding efforts undertaken by the Academy under his leadership in all fields, especially in the field of spreading and promoting a culture of moderation, tolerance, and coexistence inside and outside the Member States of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). He also praised the central role played by the Academy, as the supreme legal reference for the Muslim Ummah, which aims to achieve scientific integration and intellectual exchange among the Ummah’s scholars through the formulation of clear scientific decisions clarifying the legal rulings appropriate to the developments and calamities that occur in the world in the present era. Meanwhile, His Excellency expressed his aspiration to strengthen the partnership and cooperation relations between his Ministry and the Academy by signing a model cooperation agreement in the coming days. His Excellency concluded his speech by giving a detailed overview of the activities and programs of the Ministry, which in many of its clauses are compatible with the Academy, especially with regard to programs aimed at correcting concepts and rejecting fanaticism, extremism, and terrorism in all its forms.

For his part, His Excellency the Secretary General expressed his deep thanks and appreciation to His Excellency the Minister for the warm welcome and good reception. He also conveyed the appreciation of the Academy’s presidency, general secretariat, members, and experts for the generous care that the Academy has been receiving from the leadership and people of Pakistan, praising the initiatives of the distinguished leadership of Pakistan in promoting joint Islamic action and defending Islam and Muslims around the world, especially Muslim communities living outside the Muslim world. In the meantime, he noted the abundant thanks of the Muslim Ummah and the deep appreciation of Muslim communities for the great historical initiative presented by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to combat the phenomenon of Islamophobia (= fear of Islam). This initiative resulted in the United Nations General Assembly declaring the fifteenth (15) of March as the International Day to Combat Islamophobia.

His Excellency also took this opportunity to express the Academy’s appreciation for the efforts of the Pakistani leadership in defending the rights of Muslim communities in its neighboring countries, and he singled out the leadership’s success in persuading neighboring countries to respect the feelings of Muslims, especially with regard to their right to bury their dead due to the emerging Corona pandemic in the manner determined by the teachings of their religion. His Excellency then presented a comprehensive overview of the Academy’s vision, mission, and goals, stressing on this occasion the Academy’s readiness to build exemplary partnership and cooperation relations between the Academy and the scientific and religious institutions and centers in Pakistan, led by the Ministry of Religious Affairs. He welcomed the signing of a cooperation agreement between the Academy and the Ministry in the near future.

At the conclusion of the meeting, the two parties agreed to coordinate efforts and visions with regard to contributing to providing intellectual and Shariah support to the current Afghan authority in the coming days. Then the two parties exchanged souvenirs.

The meeting was attended by the Secretary General of the Ministry, the Special Adviser to His Excellency the Minister, Mrs. Sarah Amjad Hussein, Director of Family and Women’s Affairs Department at the Academy, and Mr. Amjad Ibrahim Al-Mansi, Head of the Protocol Division at the Academy.