The Conference on Quality in International Statistics was hosted by the Committee for the Coordination of Statistical Activities (CCSA) on 29 May 2012 in Athens, Greece prior to the European Conference on Quality in Official Statistics (Q2012). Mr. Atilla Karaman, Researcher, attended the conference on behalf of the Centre.

The International Conference of Muslim Youth Cultural Cooperation held its seventh meeting on 26-27 May 2012, in Istanbul, Republic of Turkey. The conference was organized by International Youth Forum (IYFO) under the theme of "Islamic Union and Muslim Youth". It brought together over 200 delegates from 120 countries including leaders and representatives of the youth and student organizations, leading politicians, journalists and representatives of independent international NGOs. The 7th Conference of Muslim Youth Cultural Cooperation offers the participants an opportunity to discuss the current developments in the world and the future of youth movements in the Muslim world accordingly. It also provides a platform to share the experiences of Muslim youth in protecting Islamic values and Muslim identity.

Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) has organized a training programme on “Reserve Management” at the National Bank of Kyrgyz Republic on 23-24 May 2012 within the framework of OIC Central Banks Capacity Building Programme. The Course was provided by Mr. Suat Aydin, senior portfolio manager from the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey, and was attended by relevant members of the National Bank of Kyrgyz Republic.

The 5th Astana Economic Forum was organized and hosted by the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan in Astana on 22-24 May 2012. The Forum is an international platform organized and conducted with the support and active participation of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, H.E. Nursultan Nazarbayev, annually.

The World Bank, in partnership with Capital Markets Board of Turkey, and Albaraka Banking Group organized a conference entitled “The Role of Sukuk in Development”. The conference, held on 18 May 2012 in Istanbul, Turkey, brought together policy-makers, standard-setters, market practitioners, and international organizations to discuss how best to unlock the potential of the Islamic securitization, known as ‘Sukuk’, in support of growth and development. The SESRIC was represented in the conference by Mr. Nadi Serhan Aydin, Researcher.

The Islamic Conference of Environment Ministers (ICEM) held its fifth session on 17-18 May 2012, in Astana, Republic of Kazakhstan. The Conference was organized by the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) and the General Presidency of Meteorology and Environment Protection (PMEP) of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in coordination with the General Secretariat of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and in cooperation with the Ministry of Environment Protection of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The 5th ICEM comes ten years after the convening of the first session in June 2002, in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, during which a founding document entitled “Jeddah Commitments on Sustainable Development” was adopted, laying down the first pillars of joint Islamic action in the field of the environment.

The Ninth Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) Summit was held on 16-17 May 2012 in Istanbul, Turkey. The Summit was hosted by the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey. The one and a half day Summit brought together an experienced international group of chairpersons and speakers, with an estimated audience of over 200 delegates from all sectors of the financial services industry across the globe.

An agreement to facilitate international cooperation between the two organisations in providing relevant activities relating to training and education in Islamic economics and finance was signed on 15 May 2012 between the SESRIC and the Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB).

The 2012 Meeting of the Central Banks and Monetary Authorities of the OIC Member Countries has been organized by SESRIC, in collaboration with the Central Bank of Turkey (TCMB), and held in Istanbul, Turkey on 15 May 2012 under the theme “Promoting Strong and Stable Capital Flows among OIC Countries: Roles of the Financial Sector and Central Banks”.

The Second Session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Statistical Commission (OIC-StatCom) was co-organised by the Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) on 13-15 May 2012 in Izmir, Turkey.

The 28th Meeting of the Follow-up Committee of the COMCEC was held on 9-10 May 2012 in Ankara, Turkey, with the participation of the member countries of the Committee (Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Palestine, Senegal, Kuwait, Iran, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Qatar, Mali and Cameroon). Representatives of Malaysia and Iraq also attended the meeting as observers. The OIC General Secretariat and the following subsidiary, affiliated and specialised organs (SESRIC, ICDT, IDB, ICCIA, IUT, and SMIIC) attended the Meeting. A representative of UNIDO has also attended the meeting.

SESRIC and the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), under the patronage of Turkish Embassy of Nouakchott, jointly organised “Food and Life Safety Support Programme” in Nouakchott, Mauritania, on 5-10 May 2012, within the framework of the  OIC Agricultural Capacity Building Programme (OIC-AgriCaB). The trainings were provided by academicians from various universities of Turkey. 33 veterinary surgeons, food engineers, medical and private sector staff from food sector attended this programme. The aim of the programme was to enhance the capacities in producing red meat, fish and other food in compliance with international level of standards.

Occupational Safety and Health Week (OHS-WEEK) has been held regularly by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security of the Republic of Turkey (MoLSS) every year on 4-10 May to discuss about situation of OHS and find proper solutions to OHS problems.

Dr. Savaş Alpay, the Director General of SESRIC, addressed the African Conference on Measuring Well-Being and Fostering the Progress of Societies as a panellist at the Roundtable of Policy Makers: Towards Evidence-Based Policy Making along with Mr. Ahmed Lahlimi Alami, High Commissioner of Planning of HCP Morocco, Mr. Moubarak Lo, Advisor to the President of Senegal, Mr. Antonin Dossou, Chief of Staff, Prime Minister of Benin, The Roundtable was chaired by Ms. Thokozile Ruzvidzo, Director of UN African Centre for Gender and Social Development and Mr. Pali Lehohla, Director General of Statistics South Africa. This session pointed out the key issues related to improving national statistical systems and using statistics for policy-making.

Occupational Health and Safety Institute (ISGUM) of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security of the Republic of Turkey was invited to the kickoff meeting for the South Eastern Europe countries (SEE countries) which was Organised and hosted by the University College of Applied Sciences in Safety and has been carried out in Zagreb, Croatia.

Dr. Savaş Alpay, Director General of SESRIC, paid a courtesy visit to Mr. Birol Aydemir, President of the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat), in Ankara, Turkey on 17 April 2012.

A delegation from International Islamic Federation of Student Organizations (IIFSO) headed by Secretary General Dr. Ahmed Abdelatti visited SESRIC on 14 April 2012. Mr. Hüseyin Hakan Eryetli, Director of Training and Technical Cooperation Department of SESRIC, received the delegation.

H.E. Ahmad Kasim Al-Ansi, Minister of Public Health and Population of the Republic of Yemen, visited SESRIC with his delegation comprising of Mr. Sameer Reza, Yemen Parliament Member, H.E. Abdulkavi Al-Iryani, Yemen Ambassador to Turkey, Mr. Khaldon Saeed Abdulla, Counselor in Yemen Embassy in Ankara and Dr. Akram Abdulkarem Algunaid, INGO Director in Ministry of Public Health and Population on 5 April 2012 in Ankara, Turkey.

SESRIC participated in the first international seminar on “Youth and Development in OIC Member Countries” organized by the IDB Group on the occasion of its 37th Board of Governors Annual Meeting on 2 April 2012 in Khartoum, Sudan. Two international experts, Mr. Huseyin Hakan Eryetli, Director of Training and Technical Cooperation Department at SESRIC, and Mrs. Dahlia Khalifa, International Finance Cooperation (IFC), and a number of youth representatives from different parts of the world attended the seminar as panelists to express their ideas on the challenges faced by the younger generation and share their concerns regarding the opportunities open to them in today’s world.

The 37th Annual Meeting of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group, took place in Khartoum, Republic of the Sudan from 31 March - 4 April 2012. The meetings of the Boards of Governors and General Assemblies of entities of the IDB Group took place on 3 – 4 April 2012. Apart from these meetings, seminars, workshops, and other fora on specific topics of interest to IDB member countries also took place during the Annual Meeting. Important highlights from IDB Group annual meeting are the followings