Iyad Madani, the new secretary general of OIC, presents a memento to his predecessor Ekmeleddin Ihsanogluh highlighting his achievements during his tenure as OIC chief at a function in Jeddah on Sunday evening. — SG photo by Hassan Cheruppa Hassan Cheruppa Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — After providing vibrant leadership and a new direction of “solidarity in action” to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) for nearly a decade, Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu steps down today (Tuesday) as secretary general of the pan-Islamic body. Former Minister of Haj and Culture and Information Iyad Madani will succeed him for the next five years. This is for the first time that, Saudi Arabia, the host country of OIC, has its official at the helm of the second largest international organization after the United Nations. Ihsanoglu won accolades from prominent Saudi and OIC officials as well as leaders of OIC-affiliated bodies and diplomats accredited to the pan-Islamic body's member states at a grand function in Jeddah on Sunday evening. The function was organized to bid farewell to Ihsanoglu and welcome Madani as the new chief of OIC. Madani led those who lauded Ihsanoglu for his outstanding services and contributions to the 57-member grouping of the Islamic world. “Ihsanoglu is an eminent international personality, in whose term OIC made remarkable achievements. As a charismatic leader, he was successful in enhancing cooperation among the member states in political, economic, social, intellectual, cultural and other fields,” he said. “Ihsanoglu was instrumental in enabling OIC to go far ahead in making its presence felt, as well as in removing the negative image of Islam across the world.” Former chairman of the Shoura Council, Sheikh Saleh Bin Humaid, secretary general of the International Islamic Fiqh Academy, senior diplomats from Turkey, Guinea, and Djibouti were among those who delivered felicitation speeches. Muhammad Subaihi, former director general of the Islamic States Broadcasting Organization, anchored the event during which mementos from various OIC bodies were presented to Ihsanoglu. In his speech, Ihsanoglu summed up his activities and major achievements in his eventful nine-year tenure after joining OIC as its first elected secretary general in January 2005. “OIC is now being recognized as a global actor in international affairs and an agent of modernization and moderation in the Islamic world. I travelled east, west, north and south, and circled around the globe 62 times, but never have I lost sight of OIC's vision and mission. My watch was always set on Jeddah time, as my mind was attached to the work being done at the OIC general secretariat's follow up of the developments for the causes of the Muslim world and actions that I have to carry out in this regard with my colleagues. OIC has always been our priority and our utmost interest was in work.” Ihsanoglu said his focus, from the very beginning, was on increasing the efficiency and accuracy of both policies and activities of OIC to achieve success in tackling the unprecedented challenges facing the Muslim Ummah in the 21st century. For this, a reform process was launched translating the concept of “solidarity in action” with three objectives in hand — reform within OIC, reorganizing OIC to meet the challenges through modernization, and establishing OIC's position as a major player in international affairs. Referring to the achievements in the political field, he said, “OIC changed its traditional approach and adopted its own dynamic method in many issues, such as sectarian rifts in Iraq, which led to the 2006 Makkah agreement, and reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas in 2006, and the largest participation ever by member states in voting for Palestine's membership at the UN and UNESCO.” It was under Ihsanoglu that OIC changed its name and logo, and initiated in 2005 an ambitious 10-year Program of Action. In the economic field, achievements include increasing the volume of intra-OIC trade from $205 billion in 2004 to $742 billion in 2012. Under the dynamic leadership of Ihsanoglu, OIC established several organs, including the Islamophobia Observatory, the Women Development Organization, and Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission. His role was tremendous in building the image of OIC and opening it up to the international community, and the last initiative in this regard was his recent historic visit to the Vatican and meeting Pope Francis. Referring to his future plans, Ihsanoglu said, “As my mandate comes to an end, I wish to reaffirm that I would continue for the rest of my life to be conscious and sincere to the concerns and problems of the Muslim Ummah. However, I would also like to say as the burden of responsibility is shifting to competent hands and from my shoulders to stronger ones, the feeling is one of happiness and satisfaction.”
