Ambassador Lang Yabou’s Welcoming Remarks To Senior OIC Officials

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem Assalamu’alaikum warahmatullaahi wabarakaatuh Your Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates and Representatives of OIC Member and Observer States, Distinguished Representatives of OIC Organs, Specialized Agencies and Institutions, Representatives of The Media, Ladies and Gentlemen,

On behalf of the Government and people of The Gambia, allow me to seize this unique opportunity to warmly welcome you all to this very important Senior Officials Meeting as part of preparations for the 15th Islamic Summit Conference.

Allow me to also convey the fraternal greetings of the people of The Gambia – “The Smiling Coast of Africa” – your home away from home. This historic Summit that is being held under the theme: “Enhancing Unity and Solidarity Through Dialogue for Sustainable Development”, in Banjul, The Gambia comes at a pivotal moment for our organization. Unity, Solidarity, Dialogue and Sustainable Development should be key drivers of the Ummah’s development agenda.

As experts and senior officials, our deliberations and contributions to the outcome document are very critical to the success of the Summit. During our meetings and interactions in these two days, we shall be assisted by our colleagues from the OIC General Secretariat, particularly the experts from the Legal Department, on substantive matters that have legal implications to enable us to make informed decisions on the various agenda items before us.

Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates, Following the adoption of our draft agenda and work programme, we are expected to engage in a general discussion session that would begin today and hopefully continue tomorrow, In’cha Allah. With your kind indulgence and cooperation, it is our intention to grant each delegation the floor to make interventions during the discussions regarding various items on the agenda. Colleagues and friends, it is important to point out that, when we discuss the draft communique and the other outcome documents of our meeting, we must bear in mind what is at stake i.e the huge mutual and shared challenges facing the Ummah and our collective responsibility to find solutions.

Today, the Ummah is witnessing challenges of unprecedented proportions affecting our citizens that we cannot continue to ignore. It’s time for decisive, bold and holistic actions that are informed by humanitarian, developmental and diplomatic dimensions in our search for effective and durable solutions to our shared challenges. We are meeting at a time when the larger international community, especially members of the ummah, are going through unprecedented conflicts and geopolitical tensions that require our urgent attention. Violent extremism, terrorism and genocidal actions have become normalized in certain parts of our world. As experts who are trusted by our leaders and people and, assigned the responsibility of charting an acceptable outcome for the Summit, we must do so, with only noble objectives in mind, i.e the absolute imperative of ensuring peace, security, stability and development for humanity, especially the unprivileged communities of the ummah. The time for action is now. We need increased solidarity, cooperation and coordination of efforts while building mutual trust between and among ourselves as brothers and sisters facing similar challenges and issues. Matters of mutual concern and interest should be addressed through solidarity, dialogue and compassion. These are values that are Islamic, enduring and universal. Excellencies, dear colleagues, As senior officials and experts, we are obliged to give our leaders and people a good outcome that will guide both the Ministerial Meeting and the Summit Conference. We must do so by always reminding ourselves that the threats and challenges facing us can only be tackled through greater unity, renewed solidarity and by working together harmoniously through dialogue as encapsulated in the theme of the 15th Islamic Summit.

Dear Friends, I look forward to your frank and fruitful deliberations that would enrich the final Summit documents in a spirit of cordiality and an atmosphere of camaraderie, friendship and solidarity. You are once again welcome, and from the deep depths of our hearts, we thank you for coming to the Smiling Coast of Africa to attend the 15th OIC Islamic Summit Conference. On behalf of His Excellency the President and the entire nation, I seize this opportunity to thank you for supporting our efforts in hosting the Summit.

By trusting us with the chairmanship of this noble and great organization we assure you that we will not disappoint you. We look forward to working closely with all of you in the service of the ummah and the larger international community during our chairmanship. We will continue to rely on your support and cooperation at all times. Thank you for your kind attention. #OBS24 #OICBanjulSummit #Diplomacy