JEDDAH: The Organization of Islamic Cooperation has organized a Donors’ Conference with the coordination of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to Support Displaced Persons and Refugees in the Sahel and Lake Chad Basin at its headquarters in Jeddah.
According to the OIC press release issued on Sunday, the conference was held on October 26 in line with the resolution No. 4/49-ICHAD adopted at the 49th session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers.
It is to be noted that the conference was conducted through joint work and coordination between the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
The OIC Secretary-General, Hissein Ibrahim Taha, on the occasion, stated that the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, with its laudable initiative to host this conference and its generous contribution to the efforts aimed focused at mobilizing the necessary resources to meet the requirements of displaced persons and refugees in the Sahel nation and the Lake Chad Basin, not only enshrines a long tradition of supporting friendly African nations, but also reflects its adherence to the values of solidarity.
He added that this donors’ conference is a sign of solidarity between the OIC and its external partners who have been mobilized to provide a joint response to the urgent challenges associated with the acute crisis of displaced persons and refugees.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Eng. Walid bin Abdul Karim Al-Khuraiji, affirmed that “the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s hosting of this conference meshes with its keenness to respond to everything that serves humanitarian issues and to provide assistance to peoples in need, in line with the Charter of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the resolution of Foreign Ministers at the Organization.”
The donors’ conference stresses achieving a number of objectives, creating awareness of the refugee and displacement crisis in the region in order to come up with strategies to address it, building strong partnerships that would enhance long-term solutions to the problems of displacement, food security, and other crises, in addition to intensifying diplomatic work to prevent crises in the region.
The participants of the conference agreed on the significance of mobilizing resources to provide assistance to more than 11 million people suffering from the consequences of displacement and asylum in the Sahel region and the Lake Chad Basin.
The conference was attended by Dr. Abdullah Al Rabeeah, Advisor at the Royal Court of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in charge of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center, Joyce Musaya, Acting Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator at the United Nations, Raouf Mazou, Assistant High Commissioner for Operations at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and Zubaida Abubakar Omar, Director General of the Emergency Management Agency in Nigeria, in addition to a representative of the European Union.
The session saw positive interaction among the participants, as it included a review of the efforts of the King Salman Center and global agencies in supporting refugees and displaced persons and addressing the humanitarian situation, particularly in the Sahel and Lake Chad region.
The relevant ministers from the countries of the Sahel and Lake Chad Basin, including Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Mauritania, Cameroon, Burkina Faso and Mali, spoke in succession during the session, where they provided a detailed explanation of the humanitarian situation in their respective countries and the necessary requirements to address these crises. Representatives of the OIC Member States also spoke during the donation session, voicing their support for efforts to end the displacement crisis in the region.
At the conclusion of the conference, the OIC Secretary-General extended his sincere thanks and gratitude to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, represented by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and Crown Prince, Prime Minister, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, for the support and assistance they provide to the organization in order to achieve its goals.
The Secretary-General also lauded the efforts of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center and its continuous support for the organization’s projects, particularly its cooperation to make this conference a success, while also expressing his thanks and appreciation to the United Nations agencies and Member States for their coordination and cooperation in order to meet the conference’s goals.
