The 12th meeting of the Islamic World Heritage Committee (IWHC) was held in Azerbaijan’s Shusha city on Tuesday, as part of the celebration of Shusha as Culture Capital in the Islamic World for 2024.

Addressing the event, Aydin Karimov, Special Representative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan in Shusha district, congratulated the participants and wished the conference success.

The address of Salim M. Al-Malik, Director-General (DG) of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), was delivered on his behalf by Mohamed Zinelabidine, Head of ICESCO’s Culture and Communication Sector, in which he reaffirmed ICESCO’s commitment to support efforts aimed at preserving the Islamic world’s heritage through a series of books published to identify endangered archaeological sites and cultural elements, and inscribe more historical sites and cultural elements on the Islamic world heritage lists, which so far include a total of 637 sites and cultural elements.

In her remarks, Saadat Yusifova, Azerbaijan’s Deputy Minister of Culture, pointed out that heritage faces a number of challenges that may threaten its existence, particularly conflicts and wars, and that the preservation of this heritage is a right for future generations.

In his address, Mohammed Al-Aidarous, Chairman of the Islamic World Heritage Committee, thanked the Republic of Azerbaijan for hosting the meeting, indicating that the meeting will discuss a number of major issues affecting the Islamic world’s heritage, which will support the restoration and preservation of heritage.

Webber Ndoro, Head of ICESCO’s Islamic World Heritage Center, presented the Center’s next two-year strategy, its vision and priorities, and its key programs and activities. The Center’s experts presented a number of documents and reports on the finalization of the Islamic World Heritage Portal and highlighted the Center’s partnerships, in addition to a presentation on the major publications of ICESCO’s Islamic World Heritage Center for 2024.

The meeting also featured member states’ nomination files of historical sites and cultural elements for inscription on ICESCO’s Islamic World Heritage List, reviewed the vision and activities of ICESCO’s Heritage Center, presented its 2024 publications, and discussed major challenges facing the Center.