Under the patronage of H.E. Dr. Mohamed Ould Amar, Director-General of ALECSO, and H.E. Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Awar, UAE Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation, Acting Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, the 19th Conference of Arab Ministers of Higher Education and Scientific Research concluded on November 28, 2024.
The Conference saw the participation of Arab Ministers of Higher Education and Scientific Research, along with ambassadors, UAE government officials, representatives from the Arab League General Secretariat, the Association of Arab Universities, the Federation of Arab Scientific Research Councils, the UNESCO Regional Center of Quality and Excellence in Education, and leaders of regional and international academic institutions.
In his closing remarks, Dr. Mohamed Ould Amar expressed his deep thanks to the United Arab Emirates for the generous hospitality and excellent organization of the Conference. He underlined the role of higher education as a key tool to address multiple challenges, including combating unemployment, building the needed skills to keep up with digital economy, and enhancing innovation and scientific research to offer practical solutions to emerging issues. To achieve these goals, he called for further modernizing working methods and developing innovative strategies that would make higher education more flexible and responsive to today’s rapid transformations.
The Director-General stressed ALECSO’s special focus on building networks of cooperation among universities and scientific research institutions in Arab countries, which has provided unprecedented opportunities for knowledge and experience sharing. ALECSO, he added, has also worked to foster the role of scientific research through launching the ALECSO Fund for Scientific Research, Entrepreneurship, and Innovation, which will be operational in early 2025. This fund is designed to meet the development needs of Arab countries, by supporting research projects focused on strategic priorities such as food security, renewable energy, water resource management, and other crucial issues of interest to ALECSO.
The Director-General indicated that ALECSO has been working to strengthen national efforts to promote digital transformation in higher education. By supporting the development of e-learning platforms and open educational resources, ALECSO has helped expand access to higher education, particularly in disadvantaged areas, and during crises and emergencies.
The 19th Conference concluded with a Ministerial Session that discussed and adopted key recommendations, including the launch of joint regional projects aimed at improving the infrastructure for scientific research, and developing educational policies to foster the role of higher education as a driver of sustainable development.
At the end of the closing session, the “Abu Dhabi Declaration” was read out, and a message of thanks and gratitude was sent to His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates, from the participating Ministers and Heads of Delegations.
