Preparations are afoot at the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) for its festival, the first of its kind, to be staged on the soil of the Arab Republic of Egypt, under the theme of: “One Nation, A Diversity of Cultures ….. Palestine in the Heart”. The Festival’s events are scheduled to launch on February 5th and last till February 9th, 2019, with some 20 OIC Member States having already confirmed their participation, including the host country and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, (the OIC headquarter State), and with still more reactions anticipated from other Member States.
Tanzania will be the Festival’s guest of honor, as confirmed in a declaration made by Ambassador Hesham Youssef, the OIC Assistant Secretary General for humanitarian, cultural and social affairs, at a press conference held at the seat of the Cultural Higher Council in Cairo with the participation of Dr. Hiba Yousef, head of the external cultural relations division at the Egyptian Cultural Ministry as well as Ambassador Majed Nafea, deputy foreign minister for cultural affairs and other officials from various relevant Egyptian quarters partaking in the festival such as the ministry of youth and sports and the Tourism Authority.
Among the participants in the festival, there will also be a number of the OIC subsidiary institutions including the Islamic Centre for History, Art and Culture (IRCICA), the Islamic Centre for the Development of Trade (ICDT), the Islamic Solidarity Fund (ISF), the Islamic Organization of Education, Science and Culture (ISESCO), the Islamic Union of News Agencies (UNA) and the OIC Youth Forum for Dialogue and Cooperation (YFDC).
The Festival’s inauguration ceremony will take place at the Grand Theatre of Cairo’s Opera House, and will be honoring a number of eminent Islamic figures that have impacted our Islamic World, an additional pioneering initiative embraced by the OIC Festival.
The festival events are scheduled to extend over five days with cultural and artistic events as well as intellectual seminars to be staged in multiple venues across Cairo such as: Heritage Houses, Al Moez Street and Al Azhar Alsharif, in addition to the organization of a marathon and other events for the special-needs people and for kids.
The OIC Festival represents a public event where intellect and politics commingle, a venue where the Islamic World’s varied cultures and products take center stage with a view to build bridges of cooperation and mutuality among the peoples in addition to reaching out to the Muslim communities and minorities in non-OIC Member States.