H.E. Zehra Zümrüt SELÇUK and H.E. Fahad Bin Assaad Bin Abdulkareem ABUALNASR, Ambassador of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in Ankara, held a productive meeting at SESRIC Headquarters. The meeting focused on strengthening collaboration between SESRIC and Saudi Arabia, particularly in capacity-building initiatives and partnerships with the Saudi national institutions.

SESRIC and the ILO Office for Türkiye held a coordination meeting on 20 February 2024 at the SESRIC Headquarters to discuss potential collaboration activities. During the meeting, SESRIC shared proposed activities for collaboration with the ILO, focusing on statistics, research, and training. These activities included, among others, a care economy project proposal, the OIC Occupational Safety and Health Network (OIC-OSHNET), and the OIC Public Employment Services Network (OIC-PESNET). SESRIC also outlined its 2024 schedule of training courses, webinars, meetings, and training of trainers (ToT), inviting the ILO to contribute with its expertise in various subjects such as Labour Statistics, SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth) Indicators, Strategies for Supporting Mental Health at Work, Effective Labour Market Information Systems, and Integrating Green Skills and Sustainable Practices into TVET Programmes.

SESRIC hosted a technical meeting with the OECD Istanbul Centre to explore partnership opportunities in areas of common interest. The meeting took place at SESRIC Headquarters in Ankara, Türkiye, on 20 February 2024.

H.E. Zehra Zümrüt SELÇUK paid a courtesy visit to Mr. Paolo MARCHI, UNICEF Türkiye Representative, to explore avenues for enhanced cooperation and capacity-building programmes in the domain of children and their well-being.

SESRIC held a virtual coordination meeting with the Islamic Organization for Food Security (IOFS) on 19 February 2024 to discuss the implementation of the Agreed Joint Activities between the two institutions, in line with the Matrix of the 7^th Annual Coordination of the OIC Institutions (ACMOI), which was held on 17-18 January 2024 in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

H.E. Zehra Zümrüt SELÇUK engaged in a productive meeting with H.E. Amb. Saif Bin Rashid Bin Saif ALJAHWARI, Ambassador of the Sultanate of Oman in Ankara. The visit aimed to enhance collaboration between SESRIC and relevant national institutions in Oman.

H.E. Zehra Zümrüt SELÇUK and H.E. Dr. Babatunde AHONSI, UN Resident Coordinator (UNRCO) in Ankara, came together to explore avenues for enhanced cooperation between SESRIC and UN agencies in Türkiye.

Within the framework of Tobacco Free OIC Capacity Building Programme (TF-CaB), SESRIC organised a Training Course on “Supporting Tobacco Farmers through Tobacco Control Programmes” on 13-14 February 2024 through an online video conferencing platform for the benefit of 48 experts and executives from Ministries and relevant national institutions in charge of tobacco control in 14 OIC Member Countries.

SESRIC particiapted in the Annual Meeting of the Global Network of Institutions for Statistical Training (GIST) on 12 February 2024, virtually hosted from New York. The meeting brought together GIST members, the Stakeholder Advisory Board, and National Statistical Offices (NSOs) to review the achievements of the past year and to set the strategic directions and priorities for 2024, emphasizing the collective ambition to strengthen global statistical capacities.

H.E. Zehra Zümrüt SELÇUK held a high-level meeting with the International Labour Organization (ILO) delegation, comprised of H.E. Beate ANDREES, ILO Assistant Director-General and Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, and H.E. Dr. Yasser Ahmed Hassan IBRAHIM, Director of ILO Türkiye Country Office. The meeting took place at SESRIC Headquarters and focused on crucial matters related to labor issues in OIC Countries.

Within the framework of its Statistical Capacity Building (StatCaB) Programme, SESRIC organised a Training Course on “SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation) Indicators” with the participation of 97 experts from National Statistical Offices (NSOs) and Ministries responsible for Water of 23 OIC countries on 12-13 February 2024 through an online video conferencing platform.

A delegation from SESRIC conducted a study visit to Uganda, which was organized by the Islamic University in Uganda (IUIU) in collaboration with the Ugandan Embassy in Türkiye. The purpose of the visit was to explore the opportunities for further cooperation with relevant national authorities and OIC institutions based in Uganda, and learn more about the latest efforts of the country in promoting inclusive and sustainable development in the case of Mount Elgon region. The SESRIC delegation consisted of Dr. Kenan BAĞCI, Senior Researcher, and Muzamil EDEMA, Researcher at SESRIC.

H.E. Zehra Zümrüt SELÇUK paid a courtesy visit to H.E. Hazem Issam AL-KHATIB AL-TAMIMI, Ambassador of Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in Ankara. The visit aimed to explore potential venues of cooperation between SESRIC and national institutions of Jordan.

SESRIC and the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) held a coordination meeting virtually on 31 January 2024. The meeting served as a platform for discussions, exploring various areas of collaborations and potential joint initiatives. Among the prospective collaborations discussed were capacity building programmes, research projects, and the sharing of data, with a specific focus on advancing the field of Halal Tourism.

H.E. Zehra Zümrüt SELÇUK held a bilateral meeting with H.E. Dr. Yasser Ahmed HASSAN, Director of the ILO Türkiye Office. The meeting aimed at deepening collaboration and exploring new avenues for joint initiatives to benefit the OIC countries.

H.E. Zehra Zümrüt SELÇUK paid a courtesy visit to H.E. Alkali Fanka CONTEH, Ambassador of the Gambia in Ankara. The meeting focused on exploring opportunities for collaboration in capacity building and technical cooperation initiatives between SESRIC and The Gambia.

H.E. Dr. Walid ABDELWAHAB, Director of the IsDB Regional Hub in Türkiye paid a courtesy visit to H.E Zehra Zümrüt SELÇUK at the SESRIC HQs. The meeting aimed to reinforce the longstanding partnership between the two OIC institutions.

Within the framework of its Statistical Capacity Building (StatCaB) Programme, SESRIC organised a Training Course on “SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) Indicators” for the benefit of 28 experts from the National Statistical Offices (NSOs) of 9 Arabic speaking OIC countries on 22-23 January 2024 through an online video conferencing platform.

H.E. Zehra Zümrüt SELÇUK paid a courtesy visit to H.E. Dr. Batyr BERDYKLYCHEV, WHO Representative and Head of Türkiye Country Office. The meeting, held on 19 January 2024, aimed to explore avenues for enhancing cooperation between SESRIC and WHO, with a specific focus on health-related initiatives.

SESRIC participated in a preparatory meeting with the panel participants for the upcoming UNECE/UNICEF Expert Meeting Session on Child Disability Data, which will be held on 4–6 March 2024 in Geneva, Switzerland.