Updated 5 October 2011
The Second Executive Council Meeting of The World Federation for the term 2011 to 2014 was held at the Stanmore Hujjat Islamic Center in London, UK on 24 and 25 September 2011. The meeting was joined by Executive Councilors and invitees from around the world including Europe, Africa, Middle East, North America, Pakistan India and Australia. President of Pune Jamaat in India, Salim Virani was amongst the invited guests. As well, for the first time in a long time, Australia was represented by Aftab Rizvi of Melbourne. Hence, one may suggest that all areas of the globe had representation at the meeting.
The meeting commenced with a reflection by Sayyid Aliraza Naqvi on a passage from a letter written by Imam Ali (as) to Maalik al-Ashtar who was appointed by the Imam as the Governor of Egypt. This letter is a précis of the principles of administration and justice as dictated by Islam.
The President of the KSIMC of London (Stanmore), Kamrudin Khaki and the President of The Council of European Jamaats, Dr. Husein Jiwa welcomed the councilors and invitees to London with a cordial address. President of The World Federation, Dr. Asgarali Moledina completed the presidential addresses by welcoming everyone to the meeting. He highlighted his activities of the past 4 months including his trips to Somalia, Kenya and the United Kingdom. He discussed key issues and ended by calling for unity and brotherhood so that as community leaders we can work together at all levels.
IIPS: The Way Forward
The World Federation Vice President, Munawer Rattansey provided a short background on the Muballigheen Training Program (MTP) and presented the report submitted for this meeting. The report outlined 3 options for the future of the Islamic Institute of Post Graduate Studies (IIPS), which was the vehicle used to deliver the MTP. The Councilors deliberated this in great deal and agreed that the way forward was to undertake the one year MA in Islamic Education accredited by Winchester University through distance learning and the first cohort will commence in 2012.
The World Federation Foundation Fund
The vision of The World Federation Foundation Fund (WFFF) is to build a strategic investment fund in order to create the necessary income stream for The World Federation’s long term growth and sustainability. Sibtein Asaria of the WFFF Sub-Committee presented the Executive Council with the Terms of Reference. This paper was reviewed and the revised version of the final document was adopted. As well, the election of the WFFF Sub-Committee took place and the following members were elected:
|
POSITION |
ELECTED MEMBER |
|
Chairman |
Sibtein Asaria |
|
Secretary |
Kumail Manji |
|
Member |
Sajjad Rashid |
|
Member |
Sadique Jaffer |
|
WF Ex-Officio |
Reza Hooda |
Secretariat Action Plans 2011-2014
The World Federation, Secretary General, Shan-E-Abbas Hassam presented the amended Draft Action Plan for the term 2011 to 2014. He made it clear that he fully understood that this was an “unrelenting and unflinchingly ambitious” action plan. He made it clear that this was the “term of delivery” and that the Secretariat would be busy “providing services for the community”. He suggested the reason for having a clear Action Plan of the Secretariat activities was to maintain accountability and to measure the overall success of each department of The World Federation. The Executive Council shared his excitement for the plan and unanimously adopted it. The Action Plan will be delivered in partnership with the Regional Federations and will be reviewed at all subsequent Executive Council Meetings. The Action Plan will be presented to the community at large in next week’s newswire.
IRED Workshop
On 23rd September 2011, Executive Councilors were invited to participate in the International Relief and Development (IRED) workshop. The purpose of this workshop was to further discuss and understand the content of the IRED concept paper that was presented at the Extra-Ordinary Conference held in Dar-es-Salaam in May 2011 on the organization’s international relief and development work. Dr. Akber Mohamedali and Siddika Jessa facilitated this workshop where over 35 participants from The World Federation Office Bearers, Councilors, Assistant Secretary Generals and Invitees attended.
The key workshop objectives were to review the vision for IRED, to understand the current work and challenges faced by the IRED department, and finally to chart the strategic direction for IRED to achieve the vision. There was tremendous energy and engagement of all the participants as a result of the productive discussions and question and answer sessions that took place. As well, the IRED team (consisting of Imran Janmohamed and Kaniz Bhimani) presented the current work, structure and governance of IRED. This part of the process was very helpful in understanding the work of the IRED team. One of the key outcomes of this workshop was the rich information from the visioning exercise which will be used to revise the original concept paper including the vision statement for presentation at the next Executive Council meeting.
Acknowledgement of Services
The World Federation acknowledged Ahmed Bhai Daya with a certificate of appreciation for his lifetime of services, dedication and continued support to the Office Bearers of The World Federation. Dr Moledina, the President of The World Federation stated: ‘Ahmed Bhai Daya has been a tireless worker during my term of office and has been extremely forthcoming with new ideas and providing us with advice”.
Young Heroes: JustGiving Fundraisers
Husayn Yahya and Zainab Fatema Merali were invited to make a presentation to the Executive Council Meeting on their campaign to raise funds for this year’s Ramadhan Relief Program. This brother-sister team were successful in raising 1 million Kenyan Shillings to help the famine victims in East Africa. The entire Executive Council was extremely impressed by the sympathy shown to the victims of the East Africa famine by these two young children.
Women’s Needs Assessment
Councilor Saeeda Jiwa presented the report on the Women’s Needs Assessment. The World Federation Secretary General, Shan-E-Abbas Hassam suggested that perhaps 2 representatives from each Region be selected to deliver the needs assessment and provide an update at the next Executive Council meeting.
Africa Economic Empowerment Plan
The Economic Empowerment Committee of Dar es Salaam Jamaat was created in response to the increasing number of families needing welfare support to meet their basic needs. The Africa Federation’s Hon. Assistant Secretary, Kumail Manji informed the Executive Council that the aim of the Africa Economic Empowerment Plan is to increase the disposable income of community members in Africa by 25% through various direct and indirect initiatives. The World Federation will work with The Africa Federation and the Dar es Salaam Jamaat to eradicate poverty in our communities in Africa by examining various housing, education and health initiatives.
Media Strategy
At the Ordinary Conference in Dar es Salaam in May 2011, a resolution was passed to create a media working group and strategy for The World Federation. Since then, The Council of European Jamaats shared a paper with The World Federation which they developed; this paper provides a good foundation to start the work on developing a Media Strategy. The Executive Council of The World Federation agreed with the suggestion from the Secretary General to create a team that would have equal buy-in and equal representation from the various regions. The Media Working Group of The World Federation will therefore comprise of one Office Bearer and two members from each region. Regions were requested to provide names to The World Federation Secretariat within 21 days of the meeting.
Capital Projects Update
Murtaza Bharwani was appointed head of the Capital Projects portfolio. The World Federation takes this opportunity to thank past leader, Masum Somji for all of his hard work; Masum Bhai stepped down from this position to take up another assignment as the Assistant Secretary General for ZCSS.
Formation of Regional Federations
Sibtein Asaria gave an update on the Middle East Federation. The World Federation President was also keen to progress the formation of the India Federation.
Secretariat Departmental Reports
To update the community on the development of the work carried out by The World Federation, each department presented a report on their respective achievements since the last Executive Council meeting. These departments included Health (presented by Dr Munir Datoo – ASG of Health), Islamic Education (Presented by Sayyid Aliraza Naqvi – ASG of Islamic Education), ZCSS (presented by Masum Somji – ASG of ZCSS), International Relief and Development (presented by Kaniz Bhimani – Relief Manager). Sadiq Datoo, the Deputy Secretary General presented a report of the work he has done during his tenure on behalf of the Secretary General.
The Secretary General of The World Federation closed the meeting by extending his heartfelt gratitude to the Stanmore Hujjat Islamic Center and The Council of European Jamaats for hosting the Second Executive Council Meeting for the term 2011 to 2014. He also thanked all of the volunteers who graciously volunteered their time and provided their support to ensure the success of this meeting.
The President of The World Federation, Dr. Asgarali Moledina thanked all of the Councilors for attending this meeting and highlighted that his team was here to deliver the work charted out; moreover, The World Federation along with all of the Regions will need to work together to ensure that we meet all of our goals and objectives.