The 8th National Focal Points on Economic Research and Statistics Meeting (NFPM) of the Economic Cooperation Organisation (ECO) was held on 21-22 April 2011 in Baku, Azerbaijan. The Meeting was participated by high ranking officials of research institutions and statistical offices of the ECO Member Countries, as well as the representatives of regional and international organisations. SESRIC was represented by Mr. Mehmet Fatih Serenli, Director of Training and Technical Cooperation Department thereat.

The Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) organized and hosted a seminar on “Effects of Infrastructure Investment on Economic Performance: A Meta-Analysis " in its headquarters in Ankara on April 21, 2011. The seminar has been delivered by Dr. Abderrahman El Makhloufi, VU University Amsterdam.

The Centre organised a training Course on “Occupational Health and Safety” at Occupational Health Division of Ministry of Health in Brunei on 19-21 April 2011. The Course was provided by Dr. Priya Ragunath, an expert from the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) of Ministry of Health in Malaysia, and was attended by staff members of Occupational Health Division at Ministry of Health in Brunei.

The 2011 joint Eurostat-Medstat Meeting of the Directors of the National Statistical Institutes (NSIs) of the Mediterranean European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) Countries was held on 13 April 2011 in Istanbul,Turkey following the First Session of the OIC-Statistical Commission. This meeting was organised by Eurostat within the Medstat III Programme a regional statistical cooperation programme of the Mediterranean Countries and the European Union. Mediterranean partners of the Programme are: Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Syria and Tunisia. All partners of the Programme except Lebanon were represented in the Meeting. The EuropeAid, UN-ESCWA, the World Bank, the Arab Institute for Training and Research in Statistics (AITRS) and the Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) were also participated in the meeting. SESRIC was represented at the meeting by Ms.Münevver Nilgün Egemen, Senior Researcher at the Centre. Main objectives of the meeting were to discuss the work programme prepared at the latest Task Force Meeting and to develop regional strategy for statistical cooperation post-Medstat III.

The First Session of the OIC Statistical Commission (OIC-StatCom), organized jointly by Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), was held in Istanbul, Turkey on 11-12 April 2011.

The Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) organized and hosted a seminar on “The General Equilibrium Wage Impact of Trade-Induced Shifts in Industrial Compositions of Employment in Brazilian Cities, 1991-2000" in its headquarters in Ankara on April 8, 2011. The seminar has been delivered by Mr. Jian Mardukhi, University of British Columbia.

Dr. Savaş Alpay, Director General of SESRIC, and Mr. Mehmet Fatih Serenli, Director of Training and Technical Cooperation Department, visited State Ministry of Research and Technology (RISTEK) of the Republic of Indonesia on 6 April 2011 to discuss issues of mutual interest of cooperation between the two institutions.

The Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) organised a seminar on Managing Liquidity in the Islamic Financial Services Industry. It was held on 6-7 April 2011 in Istanbul, Turkey. The Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT) hosted the event. The Centre was represented at the seminar by Mr. Nadi Serhan Aydin, Researcher at the Centre.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between the Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC), Centre for Vocational and Art Courses of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (ISMEK) and Ministry of National Education (MONE) of the Republic of Indonesia on 5 April 2011 during the official visit of H.E. Abdullah Gül, President of Turkey and Chairman of Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (COMCEC).

A group of ten master trainers from different provinces of the Republic of Pakistan was awarded with İSMEK Master Trainer Programme (İMTP) Certificate on 1 April 2011 after successful completion of the training course during the period 21 March – 1 April 2011 in Istanbul, Turkey.

SESRIC partnered with the Centre for Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Policy Research and Training, affiliated to COMSTECH, in the organization of the training course on “Technology and Innovation Policy” on 14- 19 March, in Islamabad, Pakistan..

SESRIC organised the 3rd Meeting of the NSOs of the OIC Member Countries on 24 February 2011 as a side event during the 42nd Session of the United Nations Statistical Commission held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, USA. Dr. Savaş Alpay, Director General of SESRIC, and Ms. Münevver Nilgün Egemen, Senior Researcher represented the Centre thereat.

The Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) organised a training Course on “Payment Systems” at the National Bank of the Kyrgyz Republic on 25-27 January 2011. The Course was provided by Ms. Sinem Kamiloğlu, an expert from the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey, and was attended by 15 specialists of the National Bank of the Kyrgyz Republic.

Third Meeting of the Steering Committee of the Islamic Conference of Health Ministers was held at the OIC Headquarters in Jeddah on 22-23 January 2011. The purpose of the Steering Committee Meeting was to review the actions taken on the resolutions adopted by the First and Second Islamic Conferences of Health Ministers (ICHM), and the preparation for the Third Islamic Conference of Health Ministers to be hosted by Kazakhstan in 2011. The meeting was attended by the members of the Steering Committee and SESRIC was represented by Dr. Savaş Alpay, Director General, and Mr. Mehmet F. Serenli, Director of Training and Technical Cooperation Department thereat.

The Centre organised a training Course on “Education & Training Statistics” at the National Statistical Institute - Niger on 12-15 January 2010. The Course was provided by Dr. Bruno Magloire KAMGHO TEZANOU, an expert from the National Statistical Institute of Cameroon, and was attended by 20 staff members of the National Statistical Institute in Niger.

Dr. Savaş Alpay, Director General of SESRIC, addressed to the Fourteenth Session of the Fourteenth Session of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) Standing Committee on Scientific and Technological Cooperation (COMSTECH), which was held at Islamabad on 11-13 January 2011, under the Chairmanship of H.E. Mr. Yousaf Raza Gillani, Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and Co-Chairman COMSTECH. Nearly three hundred delegates from twenty-nine member states and twenty-four international and regional organizations attended the meeting.

A Policy Dialogue Workshop on “Islamic Monetary Policy” was held in Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran on 8-9 January 2011. The workshop was jointly organized by Islamic Research and Training Institute (IRTI), which is a member of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group, and the Monetary and Banking Academy (MBRA) of the Central Bank of Islamic Republic of Iran. The workshop brought together officials from the Central Banks of some OIC member countries, academicians, researchers, and other experts from the OIC member countries. SESRIC was represented at the workshop by Mr. Murat Atlamaz, Senior Researcher at the Centre. Islamic finance and its implications for the monetary policies of some OIC member countries were the main theme of the workshop.