JEDDAH — The Islamic Solidarity Fund (ISF), the financial arm of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), has recently signed a cooperation agreement with the Charitable Fund in Support of Excelling Students in Yemen, under which grants will be extended to excelling Yemeni students to pursue their studies in certain member states, according to well-defined rules and criteria. OIC Secretary General Dr. Yousef Bin Ahmed Al-Othaimeen attended the signing ceremony of the accord which comes within the framework of the OIC's humanitarian efforts in favor of the Yemeni people and as a boost for intra-OIC Islamic solidarity through the extension of humanitarian aid, through the OIC's various organs including the ISF which has been playing a pivotal role in that regard. The ISF has contributed to the extension of emergency aids and to the execution of various humanitarian projects in Yemen through the construction of health clinics, the extension of support to public charities and the construction of schools, at an overall cost amounting to $3.5 million. On behalf of the ISF, the agreement was signed by its Executive Director Ibrahim Abdullah Al-Khozeim, and on behalf of the Charity in Support of Excelling Students from Yemen. From the other said, the accord was signed by Dr. Omar Abdullah Bamahsoun, chairman of its board of administration. The agreement carries scholarship programs for outstanding Yemeni students to pursue their studies in a host of member states' universities and in specialties that are congruent with the labor market demand such as medicine, pharmacy, engineering and technology. After the signing ceremony, Dr. Al-Othaimeen reiterated the importance of cooperation between the ISF and the Charitable Fund Institution in support of Excelling Students. He noted that the OIC general secretariat was keen to ensure that the scholarships extended by the ISF will be of a high degree of quality and professionalism in all the scientific, administrative, cultural and social fields envisioned and offered by the member states' universities.
