The Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) organised the First Meeting of the Monitoring and Advisory Committee (MAC) of the Vocational Education and Training Programme for OIC Member Countries (OIC-VET) in Izmir, Republic of Turkey on 13 May 2009 on the sideline of the 25th Meeting of the Follow-up Committee of the COMCEC. Chaired by Mr. Mehmet Fatih Serenli, Director of Training and Technical Cooperation Department at SESRIC, The main purpose of the Meeting was to discuss, among others, the operational aspects of the OIC-VET Programme and the preparation for the pilot application which was scheduled to start in the Fall 2009. The Meeting was attended by the delegations from National Focal Points of the OIC Member States, namely Bahrain, Brunei Darussalam, Gabon, Pakistan, Qatar, Senegal, Syria, Tunisia and Turkey. Also present were representatives of the OIC Institutions, namely COMCEC, ICCI, IDB, IUT and SESRIC.

The First Meeting of the Development and Cooperation Institutions of OIC Member States was held in Istanbul on 13-14 May 2009. The meeting was organized by Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) General Secretariat, the Statistical Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) and the Turkish International Cooperation and Development Agency (TIKA) with the participation of ministers from 4 OIC Member Countries, representatives from 11 OIC Member Countries and representatives of, the OIC General Secretariat, and affiliated organs of the OIC; the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) and SESRIC and representatives from TIKA.

The 25th Meeting of the Follow-up Committee of the COMCEC was held on 12-14 May 2009 in Izmir, Turkey, with the participation of 11 member countries of the Committee (Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Palestine, Senegal, Kuwait, Iran, Cameroon, Pakistan, Qatar, Indonesia and Sierra Leone). United Arab Emirates also attended the Meeting as observer. The OIC General Secretariat and the following subsidiary, affiliated and specialised organs (SESRIC, ICDT, IDB, ICCI, IUT, ITFC, OISA and ICYF-DC) attended the Meeting.

The Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) organized and hosted a seminar on “Monetary Valuation of Health Damages from Air Pollution in Turkey: Project Overview and Methodology" in its headquarters in Ankara on May 6, 2009. The seminar was delivered by Dr. Shihomi Ara Aksoy, Department of Economics of the Hacettepe University.

The 24th Session of COMCEC entrusted the 10th Meeting of OIC Standardisation Experts Group (SEG) with the task of “Developing Halal Food Standard and Procedures”. Within this framework, the 10th Meeting of OIC Standardisation Experts Group on “Studying and Developing Halal Food Standards” was convened in Ankara on 28-30 April 2009. The Meeting was organised and hosted by the Turkish Standards Institution (TSI). It was attended by the representatives of 30 OIC Member States. Furthermore, the representative of Bosnia and Herzegovina attended the meeting as observer. The representatives of the COMCEC Coordination Office, ICCI, ICDT and SESRIC also attended the Meeting. The SESRIC was represented at the said Meeting by researcher Mr. Murat Ilkin.

The rapid progress of Islamic Economics and its applications, particularly in the area of banking and finance, has captured the interest of many to participate in intellectual discussions to find solutions to contemporary issues. The severity of the recent financial crisis enhances the need to consider Islamic Economics as a possible panacea.

The Centre organised a training course on “Payment Systems” at the Central Bank of the State of Qatar on April 26-28, 2009. The course was provided by Ms. Nesrin Ilhan, expert from the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey and was attended by 13 staff members of the Central Bank of the State of Qatar.

The Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) organized and hosted a seminar on “Cyclical Characteristics of Turkish Remittances” in its headquarters in Ankara on April 22, 2009. The seminar was delivered by Dr. Serdar Sayan, Vice Dean of the College of Economics and Administrative Sciences at TOBB University of Economics and Technology.

The Seminar on Development of Tourism in the Muslim World was held in Girne on April 15-17, 2009 with the participation of delegates from 16 OIC Member States and representatives of the OIC General Secretariat, SESRIC, IRCICA, ICDT, IDB, ISESCO and ICCI.

The 4th Coordination Meeting of the OIC subsidiary organs, specialized and affiliated institutions on the implementation of the OIC Ten-Year Programme of Action (TYPOA) was held in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, on April 7, 2009. The Meeting was attended by the OIC General Secretariat, specialized and affiliated institutions. The OIC Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation (COMCEC), OIC Committee for Information and Cultural Affairs (COMIAC), OIC Standing Committee for Science and Technology (COMSTECH), Uganda and Syria also attended the Meeting. The Meeting considered as its agenda item the documents related to the implementation of the OIC-Ten Year Programme of Action, and preparations for the celebration of the 40th anniversary of the OIC.

Together with the General Secretariat of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, the Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) has participated in a meeting on 6 April 2009 with a delegation from Roll Back Malaria Partnership in OIC headquarters. The delegation comprised of Prof. Awa Marie Coll-Seck, Executive Director, Herve Verhoosel, External Relations Manager, and Nadia Lasri, Partnership Facilitation Information Manager. The Centre was represented by Dr. Savaş Alpay, Director General of SESRIC, and Mr. Mehmet Fatih Serenli, Acting Director of Training and Technical Cooperation Department. The purpose of the meeting was to explore the ways and means of possible cooperation between Roll Back Malaria Partnership and OIC institutions.

The Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) has organised an operational meeting with the concerned OIC institutions in the area of vocational education and training. The meeting was held 4 April 2009 in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to discuss the monitoring and operational aspects of the implementation of the Vocational Education and Training Programme for the OIC Member Countries (OIC-VET). Representatives from the General Secretariat of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, COMCEC Coordination Office, Islamic Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), Islamic Development Bank (IDB) and Islamic University of Technology (IUT) attended to the meeting.

The 32nd Session of the Islamic Commission for Economic, Cultural and Social Affairs (ICECS) was held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on 4-6 April 2009. Following the Speech of the Representative of the Republic of Uganda, chairman of the 31st Session of the ICECS, at the opening session, the Secretary General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, His Excellency Prof. Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu also delivered his statement where he expressed his great honour in continuing to serve as the OIC Secretary General while noting that this meeting constitutes the first one since his re-election as OIC Secretary General. In the area of economy, His Excellency the Secretary General said that the Organization was trying hard to follow this contemporaneous logic and to create conditions to enhance joint Islamic action in the economic field by strengthening economic relations and mutual interests among the OIC Member States. He added that the current global financial crisis was a source of great concern to all Member States, the OIC General Secretariat and its institutions and expressed the hope that the Commission will closely monitor the phenomenon in collaboration with the OIC General Secretariat and the SESRIC, to study the impact of the crisis on the economies of the Member States, particularly as they relate to economic recession and restrictions on development assistance, especially to low-income countries.

A technical cooperation meeting on e-governance was co-hosted by the Public Administration Institute for Turkey and the Middle East (TODAIE), Turkish International Cooperation and Development Agency (TIKA) and the E-government Consultation Group of the Prime Ministry of Turkey on 31 March – 1 April 2009 in Ankara, Turkey.

The Conference of the Ministers Responsible for Water from the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) Member States was held as a side event of the 5th World Water Forum on March 20, 2009. The meeting was inaugurated by the OIC Secretary General, Prof. Dr. Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu and chaired by Prof. Dr. Veysel Eroğlu, Minister of Environment and Forestry of the Republic of Turkey. Among the OIC institutions SESRIC, COMSTECH and IDB were represented at the Conference. Moreover, several other international organizations participated in the Conference as well. Dr. Savaş Alpay, Director General, represented SESRIC during the Conference.

The First Coordination Committee Meeting on the implementation of the “Framework for Development and Cooperation in the Domain of Tourism between the OIC Member States” was held in Damascus, Syrian Arab Republic, on 18-19 March 2009. The Meeting was attended by the following Members of the Coordination Committee: Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Cameroon, Arab Republic of Egypt, Islamic Republic of Iran, Malaysia, Republic of Senegal, Syrian Arab Republic, Republic of Tunisia and Republic of Turkey.

The Fifth World Water Forum, with the view of “Bridging Divides for Water,” was held in Istanbul, Turkey, on 16-22 March 2009. It was organized by the World Water Council and Turkish Government. The aim of this forum was to put the water issues firmly on the international agenda and to encourage the global collaboration to address water related problems. It was the largest water-related event ever organized with over 30,000 participants from more than 90 countries.

The Fifth World Islamic Economic Forum on “Global Food and Energy Security” was held in Jakarta, Indonesia on 1-4 March 2009. Dr. Savaş Alpay, Director General of SESRIC, participated in the Forum.

The 2nd Session of the Islamic Conference of Health Ministers (ICHM) was held on 1 - 4 March 2009 in Tehran, the Islamic Republic of Iran, under the patronage of H.E. Dr. Mahmoud Ahmadi Nejad, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran and hosted by the Ministry of Health and Medical Education. Forty-five OIC Member States were present and twenty-two of the delegations were led by their respective Ministers of Health. The OIC General Secretariat and the related OIC institutions such as SESRIC, COMSTECH, IDB, ISESCO and health related international organisations such as WHO, UNICEF, UNAID, UNFPA, and the Global Fund were represented in the Conference.

The 2nd Meeting of the Steering Committee of the Islamic Conference of Health Ministers (ICHM) was convened in two parts, Part 1 on 28 February 2009 and Part 2 on 5 March 2009 in Tehran, the Islamic Republic of Iran. The objective of Part 1 of the Second Meeting of Steering Committee was to review the preparation of the Second Islamic Conference of Health Ministers held in Tehran, the Islamic Republic of Iran on 1 – 4 March. The objectives of the Part 2 of the Second Meeting of the Steering Committee were to finalize the Rules of Procedures of the Steering Committee and to discuss the follow up actions on the decisions and recommendations adopted by the same Islamic Conference.