With permission from Amir Al Mouminine, His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God Assist Him, President of the Mohammed VI Foundation of African Oulema, the city of Fez will host the sixth annual regular session of the Foundation’s Higher Council, on 16-18 Jumada II 1446 H, corresponding to 18-20 December 2024. The Meeting will be attended by 300 presidents and members of the Foundation’s sections from 48 African countries, including 50 female scholars. In addition to 17 Moroccan scholars, who are members of the Council, will also attend the meeting, including 3 female scholars.

It is worth noting that the Foundation’s Sections are located in the following African countries: Here is the list of countries in alphabetical order: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo (Brazzaville), Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The convening of this session falls within the framework of implementing the provisions of amended Article 4 of Royal Decree No. 1.15.75, dated 7 Ramadan 1436H (24 June 2015), providing for the setting up of the Mohammed VI Foundation of African Oulema. It stipulates for the following:

• Pool and coordinate the efforts of African scholars, in the Kingdom of Morocco as well as in the other African countries, in order to shed light on the pristine values of Islam, and disseminate and strengthen them;
• Undertake any initiatives likely to promote the tolerant values of the faith in any reform Africa depends on, whether at continental level or at the level of each country;
• Promote the intellectual, scientific and cultural movement in African Islamic sectors;
• Consolidate the historical relations existing between the Kingdom of Morocco and the rest of Africa and seek to develop and expand them;
• Revitalize the common African-Islamic cultural heritage by making it better known, disseminating it, and seeking to safeguard and preserve it.

During this session, the official report on the Foundation’s activities for the year 2023 and a summary of the Foundation’s activities for the year 2024 will be presented by the Foundation’s General Secretariat. The projects and activities scheduled for the year 2025 will be introduced, discussed and adopted by the Foundation’s four Standing Committees, namely:

• The Scientific and Cultural Activities Committee;
• The Sharia Studies Committee;
• The Committee for the Revival of the African Islamic Heritage;
• The Communication, Cooperation and Partnerships Committee.

At the end of the session, the final declaration of the Foundation’s Higher Council will be presented, together with the recommendations of the four Standing Committees.

It should be pointed out that on the sidelines of this session, a special ceremony will be held to honor four distinguished African scholars in recognition of their contributions to the service of the Holy Quran, the Hadith Nabawi Sharif, the African Islamic manuscripts, and the Common Religious Constants.

Additionally, during the same ceremony, prizes will be awarded to the winners in the competitions held throughout the year, totaling 57 winners across various categories and levels including:

• The Mohammed VI Foundation of African Oulema Competition of memorization, recitation and psalmody of the holy Qur’an in its 5^th edition;
• The Mohammed VI Foundation of African Oulema Competition in the Hadith Nabawi Sharif in its 1^st edition;
• The Mohammed VI Foundation of African Oulema Award for African Islamic Manuscripts and Documents in its 1^st edition;
• The Mohammed VI Foundation of African Oulema Research Award on Common Religious Constants in its 1^st.