INTRODUCTION

A. INTRODUCTION:

  1. OIC Youth Capital was initiated by the Islamic Cooperation Youth Forum (ICYF), an international institution affiliated to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), at its 2ndGeneral Assembly held in October 2014 and approved by the 42nd Session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers, held on 27-28 May 2015, in Kuwait. [OIC CFM Res. No.: 8/42-C (b)];
  1. The OIC region consists of more than 6 billion Muslims and 1/3 of it is constituted by youth. The main reason d’être of the OIC Youth Capital International Programme is to provide a yearlong stage to foster cooperation among the Member States in the field of youth policy as well as enhance Muslim youth solidarity, fostering inter-cultural diversity and the spirit of “unity” of youth from the OIC geography through different kinds of activities. The Programme is envisaged to encompass a chain of activities and events in the field of culture, academic life, youth leadership, entertainment, sports, and youth capacity building within the understanding that the interests and benefits of Muslim youth are celebrated all year long.
  1. The idea of the OIC Youth Capital International Programme was highly appreciated by the delegates of the ICYF member institutions attended the Institution’s 2ndGeneral Assembly, high-level guests, including Ministers and the Secretary-General of OIC. As a result, Istanbul was honored by being elected as the first OIC Youth Capital, which was observed in 2015/16. The Ceremony of announcing Istanbul as the first OIC Youth Capital was held in October 2014 in presence of the Secretary-General of OIC, along with representatives of the OIC institutions and members of the Host Country Government. The proposal was also approved by the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers held in Kuwait in May 2015. According to the resolutions No.: OIC/ICYSM-3/2016/R9-Y and 8/43-C respectively adopted by the 3rd Session of the Islamic Conference of Youth and Sports Ministers (5-7 October 2016, Istanbul), and the 43rd Session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers (18-19 October 2016, Tashkent) the cities of Putrajaya (Malaysia), Shiraz (Islamic Republic of Iran) and Fes (Kingdom of Morocco) were approved as the hosts of the second edition of the “OIC Youth Capital” (2017). Selection of Al-Quds (State of Palestine) as the OIC Youth Capital for 2018 was strongly welcomed in the Communiqué by the Extraordinary Meeting of the OIC Executive Committee of Foreign Ministers held in Istanbul, on 1 August 2017. And High-Level Opening Ceremony of the Al-Quds Programme was held on 6th – 8th February 2018 with the participation of 12 Ministers from the OIC Member States. The selection of Doha (Qatar) as the OIC Youth Capital for 2019 was adopted and endorsed by the ICYF 3rd General Assembly, held on 22-24 October 2018 in Istanbul, Republic of Turkey. Dhaka – OIC Youth Capital for 2020 was selected by the ICYF Executive Board with its capacity as the OIC Youth Capital Selection Committee on 25 December 2019, in Istanbul, Turkey, which compromised a force major extension of 6 months (July 2021) due to inevitable outcomes of the COVID 19 global pandemic that caused an indispensable postponement the implementation of some previously agreed activities. Kazan, the Capital city of the Republic of Tatarstan – Russian Federation, has been selected as the OIC Youth Capital – 2022 to enhance Muslim youth solidarity and to foster inter-cultural diversity and the spirit of “unity” among the youth of the OIC region and Muslim minorities in non-OIC geography through different kinds of activities. Niamey, the Capital city of the Republic of Niger, has been selected as the OIC Youth Capital – 2023 to provide various platforms for the Muslim youth to introduce and promote their cultures and traditions in an innovative and creative ways.
  1. The programme contains various youth events and activities throughout a year, with the objectives:

4.1. To contribute to the development of youth work and youth policies in the OIC Member States;

4.2. To provide a space for Muslim youth for getting to know each other and strengthen the   solidarity among them;

4.3. To create a learning environment for the youth with different cultural and geographical backgrounds and to strengthen the cooperation among them;

4.4. To provide a platform for the Muslim youth to introduce and promote their cultures and traditions in an innovative and creative way;

4.5. To promote the active citizenship of Muslim youth from various parts of the world that has different cultures but common values;

4.6. To strengthen the brotherly ties and promote the spirit of “unity”;

4.7. To promote active youth participation through social, cultural, artistic, and academic activities and to contribute to their personal development;

  1. According to the Resolutions of the relevant OIC Council of Foreign Ministers Sessions [Res. No.: 8/42-C(b) and 7/45-C(b)] as well as the ICYF General Assembly [Res. No.: GA2/016/2014], the following are the main instruments and procedures for the selection of hosts and the implementation process of the OIC Youth Capital Programme.

B. Implementation Instruments:

  1. Implementing Agency: ICYF is an Implementing Agency and is responsible for the development of the Programme’s implementation procedure and supervision of its realization. ICYF cooperates with the OIC Member States and with relevant OIC Institutions within the framework of the Programme’s other implementation instruments as identified below.
  1. The Selection Committee is responsible for the final decision on City to become the next OIC Youth Capital, and it is composed of the ICYF Executive Board Members.
  1. The Organizing Committee: is responsible for the coordination of the Programme’s implementation in the selected city, being composed of representatives from each of the following organizations: ICYF and the Host Agency as well as one representative (with no voting power) from the Host Country’s ministries of Youth, Foreign Affairs, and Internal Affairs.
  1. Host Agency: This refers to the relevant agency of the Host Country (either municipality or governmental agency) which is both prime applicants for hosting the programme in the host city and responsible for organizational and financial matters steaming out of hosting  the OIC Youth Capital. The host agency is basically responsible for organizing all local hospitality, providing organizational and budgetary requirements according to the protocol to be signed with the Implementing Agency – (ICYF).