Shusha, the cultural capital of the Islamic world, is hosting the 12th meeting of ICESCO's Islamic World Heritage Committee. Participants who visited Shusha for the event were taken on a tour of cultural heritage sites. Aydin Karimov, Special Representative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, delivered the opening speech at the meeting, which began on October 8, welcoming the guests to Shusha and wishing the Committee success. Then the address of ICESCO Director General Salim bin Mohammed Almalik was read out to the participants of the event.
In her opening speech, Deputy Minister of Culture Saadat Yusifova provided detailed information on the cultural heritage of Azerbaijan and the state policies for its protection. Noting the importance of Karabakh's heritage in the vast historical and cultural heritage of our country, S. Yusifova provided statistics on the monuments destroyed during the occupation and spoke about the ongoing restoration and construction efforts aimed at revitalizing the cultural environment and heritage.
Stressing the importance of preserving the natural heritage, the Deputy Minister presented the international events and new initiatives planned by the Ministry of Culture for COP29. During the opening session, the Chairman of the Committee, the representative of Saudi Arabia, Alayidarus Muhammed, thanked Azerbaijan for the exceptional organization and presented the agenda of the session. The opening session concluded with a special presentation on the Shusha Reserve and a commemorative photo of the committee members. After the break, Webber Ndoro, Director of the Islamic World Heritage Center, presented the concept of the Center and its priorities for the next two years.
The proposals of Azerbaijan, Burkina Faso, Qatar, Palestine, and other countries were discussed. Rizvan Bayramov, who represented our country in the Council of Experts, proposed improvements to the Committee's efforts to preserve non-Islamic heritage in Islamic countries and to improve the mechanisms for documenting Islamic heritage in non-Islamic countries.
During the second session, the group reviewed the reports on the projects of 2024 and discussed the proposals of the committee members. The session will continue its work tomorrow.
