Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Foreign Affairs
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Member Countries: The OIC has 57 members. *

Afghanistan, Albania, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Benin, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Algeria, Djibouti, Chad, Indonesia, Morocco, Cote d’Ivoire, Palestine, Gabon, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Guyana, Iraq, Iran, Cameroon, Qatar, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, the Comoros, Kuwait, Libya, Lebanon, Maldives, Malaysia, Mali, Egypt, Mauritania, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somali, Sudan, Surinam, Syria*, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Togo, Tunisia, Türkiye, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Oman, Jordan, Yemen.

* Syria's membership was suspended at the Fourth Extraordinary Islamic Summit Conference of OIC held in Makkah on 14-15 August 2012.

Observer Countries: The Organization has 5 Observer Countries.

Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (by the name of Turkish Cypriot State), Bosnia and Herzegovina, Central African Republic, Russia, Thailand.

Türkiye’s Membership status: Türkiye has been a member since the establishment of the organization.

Representation of Türkiye within the OIC: Türkiye decided to establish a Permanent Representation to the OIC by the Decree of the Council of Ministers dated 22 May 2014 and the Permanent Representative Office was inaugurated in Jeddah on 24 July 2015.

History of the Organisation:

The OIC was established by the decision of the First Islamic Summit Conference held in Rabat on 22-25 September 1969, upon the reactions of the Islamic World, provoked by the arson attack against Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holy site in Islam and located in Israeli occupied Jerusalem, by an Australian extremist Jew on 21 August 1969.

The name of the organization was changed to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) at the 38th meeting of the Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs (CFM) held in Astana on 28-30 June 2011.

The Office of Secretariat General was established at the 1st Meeting of the Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs in March 1970, a Secretary General was appointed and it was decided that the Secretariat would operate in Jeddah until the liberation of Jerusalem.

OIC Charter:

The new Charter, adopted at the 11th ICO (Islamic Conference Organisation) Summit held in Dakar on 13-14 March 2008 replacing the ICO Charter adopted in the 3rd CFM Meeting held in Rabat in 1972, is the main founding document of the Organisation. The Charter states the Organisation’s objectives and principles and determines the rules for membership, observer status, amicable settlement of disputes, budget, finance as well as operational rules.

The new Charter, which revised and substituted the previous Charter of 1972, has been a crucial milestone for reforming the Organisation. The New Charter establishes the legal basis and the organs necessary for the cooperation and activities among the Islamic countries in accordance with the contemporary requirements of the new environment which have emerged as a result of radical changes in the international fora since 1972.

Türkiye signed the new Charter at the 35th CFM Meeting (in Kampala/Uganda on 18-20 June 2007) and the Charter enter into force on 16 June 2012 as concerns Türkiye.

The Charter can be accessed through the following link:

https://www.oic-oci.org/upload/documents/charter/en/oic charter 2018 en.pdf

OIC Organs

1. Islamic Summit

2. Council of Foreign Ministers

3. Standing Committees

4. Executive Committee

5. International Islamic Court of Justice(It shall be the Organisation’s principal judicial organ following the entry into force of its status)

6. Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission

7. Committee of Permanent Representatives

8. General Secretariat

9. Subsidiary Organs

10.Specialized Organs

11. Affiliated Institutions

-Islamic Summit:

The Islamic Summit, which is the highest level decision-making body of the Organisation, consists of the Presidents and Prime Ministers of the Member States. It meets once every three years in one of the Member States, holds consultations to achieve the goals specified in the OIC Charter and adopts resolutions on the policies to be followed to this end.

Member States host the Summit meetings alternately on the basis of the geographical groups (Arab, Asia and Africa). This rule applies to other OIC meetings as well. Fourteen Summits and eight Extraordinary Summit Meetings have been held in various member states since its foundation.

Türkiye assumed the Chairmanship-in-Office of the OIC Summit for three years after the Summit held in Istanbul on 14-15 April 2016 with the theme of "Unity and Solidarity for Justice and Peace" and handed over this duty to Saudi Arabia with the 14th Summit held in Mecca on 31 May 2019.

On the other hand, if the Islamic world’s interests necessitate so, Extraordinary Summit meetings may also held in order to review the crucial issues for the Islamic world and to determine the policies the Organisation will pursue.

In this regard, upon the call issued by the President of the Republic of Türkiye, both 6th and 7th Extraordinary Summits were held in Istanbul on 13 December 2017 and on 18 May 2018, respectively following the developments in Jerusalem and Palestine.

-Council of Foreign Ministers:

The Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM), which is the secondary decision making organ following the Summit, is held once a year in one of the Member States. As is the case with the Summit Meetings, Extraordinary Sessions of the CFM may convene, when necessary, for the critical issues concerning the Islamic world.

The CFM makes decisions on issues about fulfilling purposes and implementing general policies of the Organisation, reviews the progress in implementing the decisions taken in the previous Islamic Summits and CFM Meetings, evaluates and approves the budgets of the Secretariat and subsidiary organs and elects the Secretary General.

Türkiye hosted CFM Meetings three times: in 1976 (7th CFM), in 1991 (12th CFM) and in 2004 (31st CFM).

The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Türkiye participated in the 49th CFM Meeting hosted by Mauritania in Nouakchott on 16-17 March 2023.

The candidacy of Türkiye to host the 51st OIC CFM Meeting scheduled to be held in 2025 has been registered in the Islamabad Declaration (48 th CFM).

-Standing Committees:

The OIC established the following Standing Committees so as to further address the critical issues for the Organisation and the Member States. Kings, Presidents and Prime Ministers chair the Standing Committees. These Committees are established in accordance with the Summit’s resolutions and upon the suggestions by the Council of Foreign Ministers.

1. Al-Quds Committee

(Chaired by the King of Morocco)

2. Standing Committee for Information and Cultural Affairs (COMIAC)

(Chaired by the President of Senegal)

3. Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation (COMCEC)

(Chaired by the President of the Republic of Türkiye)

4. Standing Committee for Scientific and Technological Cooperation (COMSTECH)

(Chaired by the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan)

-Executive Committee

The Executive Committee consists of 8 members, including the Summit and CFM Troika (former, current and future Term Chairpersons), Saudi Arabia as the host of the Secretariat as well as the Secretary General of the OIC and meets when necessary.

As a result of the Israel’s increasing violent attacks against the Palestinian territory, mass punishment of the Palestinian people and the burning of a Palestinian teenager named Mohamed Abu Khdair, the Executive Committee held Extraordinary Meetings in Jeddah on 10 July and on 12 August 2014 in order to review the steps to be taken by the OIC against Israel’s ongoing attacks targeting the Palestinian people, their institutions, Al-Aqsa Mosque as well as the sanctuaries of the Muslims and the Christians. Also, it convened an open-ended Extraordinary Meeting at the level of the Foreign Ministers to discuss the incidents in Haram Al-Sharif, upon the call of Türkiye, in Istanbul on 1 August 2017.

Upon Türkiye’s call as the Chair of the Summit, an open-ended Emergency Meeting of the Executive Committee at the level of the Foreign Ministers was held in Istanbul on 22 March 2019 in order to deal with the increasing Islamophobia as well as racist and xenophobic violence actions, particularly the terrorist attack perpetrated against two mosques in New Zealand on 14 March 2019. 19 countries attended the aforementioned meeting at the Ministerial level, which was chaired by Foreign Minister of Türkiye, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also attended one part of it and delivered a speech.

A meeting on Palestine in Jeddah in February 2020 and an online meeting in June 2020, as well as an online meeting in the same format in April 2020 with the theme of cooperation in the context of combating Covid-19 were organised with the initiatives of our country.

The Extraordinary Meeting of the OIC Executive Committee with Open Participation at the level of Foreign Ministers was held on 16 May 2021 in videoconference format with the attendance of H.E. Minister Çavuşoğlu, upon the initiative of Türkiye in consultation with the Palestinian authorities and Saudi Arabia, the Term President of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Summit, in response to the intensified Israeli attacks on Palestinian territories in 2021.

Lastly, the OIC Executive Committee met physically, with Open Participation, at the ministerial level in Jeddah on 18 October 2023 to address Israel's ongoing military aggression against the Palestinian people, following the attack on Israeli territories by Hamas on October 7. 22 Ministers, including H.E Minister Hakan Fidan, attended the meeting in question.

-Secretary General:

The Secretary General, who is the chief administrative official of the Organisation, is elected from among nationals of the Member States for a period of five years, renewable once only, by the CFM in accordance with the principles of equitable geographical rotation and equal opportunity.

The Secretary General is responsible for bringing to the attention of the competent organs of the Organisation matters which concern the Organisation; following-up the implementation of decisions, resolutions and recommendations of the Islamic Summits and CFM; coordinating the work of the relevant Organs of the Organisation; preparing the programme and the budget of the General Secretariat and submitting annual reports to the CFM on the work of the Organisation.

OIC Secretaries General to date:

1- Tunku Abdul Rahman (Malaysia) 1971-1973

2- Hassan Al-Touhami (Egypt) 1974-1975

3- Amadou Karim Gaye (Senegal) 1975-1979

4- Habib Chatty (Tunisia) 1979-1984

5- Syed Sharifuddin Pirzada (Pakistan) 1985-1988

6- Dr. Hamid Algabid (Niger) 1989-1996

7- Dr. Azeddine Laraki (Morocco) 1997-2000

8- Dr. Abdelouahed Belkeziz (Morocco) 2001-2004

9- Prof. Dr. Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu (Türkiye) 2005-2013

10- İyad Ameen Madani (Saudi Arabia) 2014-2016

11- Dr. Yousef bin Ahmad Al-Othaimeen (Saudi Arabia) 2016-17 November 2021

12- Hissein Brahim Taha (Chad) 17 November 2021-till now

OIC Secretaries General have usually been appointed by consensus among the Member States during the Council of Foreign Ministers. However, an election was held at the 31st session of the Council of Foreign Ministers in Istanbul in June 2004 for the first time and Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu was elected as Secretary General. Mr. İhsanoğlu, being the first Turkish citizen to hold this office, assumed his duties on 1 January 2005 and served for two terms (until the end of 2013).

At the 47th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers (27-28 November 2020, Niger), Hissein Brahim Taha, who had been nominated as the joint candidate of the African Group - thanks to Türkiye’s persistent efforts - was elected as the Secretary General of the OIC and took over the position from his predecessor Yusuf al-Useymin (Saudi Arabia) on 17 November 2021.

Hissein Brahim Taha made his first visit to Türkiye in November 2021 to attend the 37th Ministerial Session of the COMCEC and was received separately by the President, Vice President and Minister of Foreign Affairs.

-The Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission

The Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission (IPHRC), which was decided to be established within the framework of the OIC Ten-Year Programme of Action adopted at the 3rd Extraordinary Session of the Islamic Summit Conference held in Mecca on 7-8 December 2005, started its activities in Jeddah in 2012 with the adoption of the Statute of the IPHRC at the 38th Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the OIC held in Astana between 28-30 June 2011.

Türkiye hosted the Second Ordinary Session of the IPHCR in 2012 and the Seminar on Combating Islamophobia in 2018.

The IPHRC consists of 18 members, six members each from the Asian, African and Arab groups. Hacı Ali Açıkgül, the Head of the Human Rights Department of the Ministry of Justice, who represents Türkiye in the IPHRC, was re-elected as a member at the elections held for the seats that will become vacant in 2024 during the 49th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the OIC and will continue his duty for another term.

Türkiye's Relations with the OIC

Türkiye has been a member of the OIC since its establishment and has vigorously contributed to its activities. The TRNC has had observer status in the OIC since 1979 and regularly participated in the OIC Summit and the CFM meetings. It has been decided that the TRNC, formerly represented by the name “Turkish Cypriot Muslim Community” in the OIC, be represented by the name “Turkish Cypriot State”, as mentioned in the Annan Plan, at the 31st Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers (CFM) held in Istanbul on 14-16 June 2004. By the decisions adopted under the title “Situation in Cyprus” in the Summit and the CFM, the OIC confirms the cooperation and solidarity with the TRNC and supports the resolution of the Cyprus issue.

OIC also supports the protection of the rights and interests of Muslim Turkish minority and settlement of their problems, with the decisions it takes every year about the Turkish minority living in Greece, Western Thrace and the Dodecanese islands.

OIC Organizations in Türkiye

Türkiye hosts the following organs of the Organization:

-two subsidiary organs:

Statistical, Economic and Social Research Center for Islamic Countries (SESRIC),

Research Centre for Islamic History, Art and Culture (IRCICA).

-Standing Committee: The Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (COMCEC)

- representation of specialized institution: Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Office of Türkiye

-and four affiliate institutions:

Islamic Cooperation Youth Forum (ICYF),

Federation of Consultants from Islamic Countries (FCIC),

Standards and Metrology Institute for Islamic Countries (SMIIC),

Organization of Islamic Cooperation Broadcasting Regulating Authorities Forum (IBRAF).

In addition, OIC Arbitration Centre commenced its operations in Istanbul since November 2021, while the establishment of OIC Media Forum (OMF) and OIC Police Cooperation and Coordination Center (PCCC) is underway.

COMCEC is chaired by H.E. Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, President of the Republic of Türkiye, and holds its meetings in Türkiye every year, once at technical level as Monitoring Committee and once at the Ministerial level.

COMCEC’s new strategy and revised Statute were adopted at the 4 th Extraordinary Islamic Summit held in Mecca in 2012. The new COMCEC strategy was confirmed at the 13 th Islamic Summit Final Communique held in Istanbul.

The Working Groups and COMCEC Project Funding instruments, established by the Strategy, are becoming steadily more important. Establishing an OIC Arbitration Center and bringing the OIC Preferential Trade System into force as soon as possible are among the priorities of Türkiye with regards to COMCEC.

The 39th Ministerial Session of COMCEC, chaired by the President of Türkiye, was held in Istanbul on 2-5 December 2023 with the theme of “Improving the e-Commerce Capacities of the OIC Member Countries”. The 40th Session of COMCEC is planned to be held in Türkiye on 2-5 November 2024, under the theme of “Digital Transformation in Payment Systems in the OIC Member Countries”.

-Organization of Islamic Cooperation Research Centre for Islamic History, Art and Culture (IRCICA)

IRCICA, the headquarters of which is located in Istanbul, acts as a focal point and meeting place for scholars, researchers, artists, institutions, organisations working on Islamic history, culture, civilization and art; endeavours to eliminate prejudice against Islamic culture and civilization, to project their correct image, to inform the world opinion on their role and place in world civilization, and to promote a better understanding and dialogue between Muslim countries and other societies of the world; undertakes research in these fields and publishes books, bibliographies, catalogues, albums and other reference works to reinforce awareness of these subjects in public opinion.

The Retired Ambassador Prof. Dr. Mahmud Erol Kılıç has occupied the position of Director General for IRCICA since May 2021.

-Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC):

Located in Ankara, SESRIC is responsible for collecting, collating and disseminating socio-economic statistics regarding the Member States, for the use of the Member States; researching, evaluating and reporting the economic and social development in the Member States to help generate proposals that will enhance co-operation among them; organizing training programmes in selected fields geared to the expressed needs of the Member States, as well as to the general objectives of the OIC.

Following the termination of the term of office of the previous Director General Nabil Dabur, former Turkish Minister of Family, Labor and Social Services, Zehra Zümrüt Selçuk was elected as the Director General of SESRIC and assumed her duty as of 27 March 2023.

- Islamic Cooperation Youth Forum (ICYF):

ICYF was established in Baku on 1-3 December 2004 by the Founding General Assembly in accordance with the resolution adopted by the 31st session of the Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers held in Istanbul on 14-16 June 2004 with the participation of representatives from the youth institutions of OIC member states and international youth institutions, and the Forum was granted the status of institution affiliated to the OIC by the virtue of the resolution adopted by the 32nd session of the Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers held in Sana’a, Yemen in 2005.

Türkiye hosts the ICYF in Istanbul pursuant to the agreement signed in 2009.

The candidate of Türkiye, Taha Ayhan, was elected as the President of ICYF at the third General Assembly held in Istanbul on 22-24 October 2018. .

-The Standards and Metrology Institute for the Islamic Countries (SMIIC):

The idea of ​​establishing a mechanism for harmonization of standards among Islamic countries was first brought to the agenda in the COMCEC Meeting held in 1984. The Statute of SMIIC, prepared within this context, was adopted at the 14th COMCEC Meeting held in 1998 and submitted for the signature of member countries for the first time at the 15th COMCEC Meeting held in Istanbul one year later.

The Statute entered into force after fulfilling the ratification requirement of ten OIC signatory member states in August 2010 and it started its activities in Istanbul as the affiliated organ of the OIC.

Mr. İhsan Övüt is SMIIC General Secretary since 2014 and his term of office, was extended for another term covering the years 2022-2024 at the elections held in November 2021.

-The OIC Centre for Police Cooperation and Coordination

The proposal to establish a centre in Istanbul under the name of “OIC Centre for Police Cooperation and Coordination”, with voluntary membership and expert organization status was adopted at the 13th Islamic Summit held in Türkiye to strengthen cooperation among the organizations of the member countries within the OIC and to carry out capacity-building activities .

The Statute of the Centre was submitted to and adopted at the 45th CFM held in Dhaka on 5-6 May 2018 and it was signed by Türkiye at the 46th CFM held in Abu Dhabi on 1-2 March 2019,

The OIC Media Forum

The establishment of the OIC Media Forum, which is envisaged to contribute to the realization of concrete projects, arrangement of training programs and development of programs to combat Islamophobia among the information agencies of the OIC member countries, was decided at the 9th Meeting of the OIC Information Ministers’ meeting (Libreville, Gabon, 19-20 April 2012); the 40th CFM held in Conakry, the capital of Guinea, on 9-11 December 2013 registered its establishment with its headquarters in Istanbul, and granted to the Forum the status of an OIC affiliated organization.

The efforts by the Directorate of Communications of the Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye to establish the Forum continue.

-OIC Ten-Year-Programme of Action:

OIC Ten Year Programme of Action, prepared based upon the views of scholars and intellectuals, has been adopted by the 3rd OIC Extraordinary Summit Conference held in Mecca in 2005 in order to take practical steps towards strengthening the Islamic solidarity, projecting the noble values and true image of Islam, and addressing the challenges facing the Muslim world in an objective and realistic way.

The next Ten Year Action Programme covering the years 2016-2025 has been finalized by the 13th Islamic Summit Conference held in Istanbul on 14-15 April 2016.

The said Programme is a comprehensive and elaborated road map composed under the headings of political will, solidarity and joint Islamic action, moderation and tolerance in Islam, Islamic Law, Islamic Fiqh Academy, fight against terrorism, fight against Islamophobia, human rights and good governance, Palestine and the occupied Arab territories, prevention and settlement of the conflicts, peace settlement, economic cooperation, supporting the Islamic Development Bank, social solidarity in the face of natural disasters, poverty alleviation in Africa, higher education, science and technology, rights of women, youth, and family in the Islamic world, and cultural exchange among member states.

The Brainstorming Session on the Reform of the OIC

The OIC reform was first addressed to by H.E. Mr. Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Türkiye, in the meeting with Al-Othaimeen, Secretary General of the OIC, on 1 August 2017. Within this context, the draft resolution prepared under the leadership of Türkiye and entitled “Organization of the Brainstorming Session on the Comprehensive Reform of the OIC” was adopted at the 45th Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers held in Dhaka on 5-6 May 2018.

The first meeting of this Session was held in Jeddah in October 2018 and the second meeting in Bangladesh in February 2020 under the co-chairmanship of Türkiye.

13th Islamic Summit and Türkiye's Term of Office of the Summit

Türkiye has focused with its assumption of Term of Office in particular on the reform of the Organisation, settlement of conflicts, mediation, humanitarian aid and women’s issues. The Final Communique, OIC-2025 Program of Action, Palestinian Cause, Jerusalem Decision and Istanbul Declaration were adopted at the conclusion of the Summit.

The Final Communique sets out the significant political, economic, cultural and social developments and humanitarian situation in OIC member states, the rights of Muslim communities in non-OIC member states and joint position and decisions of member states regarding the administrative issues of the Organisation; Istanbul Declaration prepared by Türkiye as the host country reflects the general approach regarding the fundamental problems in the agenda of the Islamic world; the OIC-2025 Program of Action, which is the second ten-year-Program of Action of the OIC, sets the goals to be achieved on various fields between 2016 and 2025; and Palestinian Cause and Jerusalem Decision aim to maintain and increase the support for the Palestinian cause which is the founding purpose of the OIC.

The main important meetings hosted by Türkiye during its Presidency are as follows:

i. 13th Islamic Summit (April 14-15, 2016, Istanbul)

ii. 3rd Islamic Conference of Ministers responsible for Water (May 17-19, 2016, Istanbul)

iii. 3rd Islamic Conference of Youth and Sports Ministers (October 4-8, 2016, Istanbul)

iv. 6th Ministerial Conference on the Role of Women in the Development of OIC Member States (November 1-3, 2016, Istanbul)

v. Open-Ended Extraordinary Executive Committee at the level of Foreign Ministers (August 1, 2017, Istanbul)

vi. 6th Extraordinary Islamic Summit (December 13, 2017, Istanbul)

vii. 7th Extraordinary Islamic Summit (May 18, 2018, Istanbul)

viii. Emergency Open-Ended Executive Committee at the level of Foreign Ministers (March 22, 2019, Istanbul)

Türkiye also took the lead during her term for the launch of Brainstorming Sessions for the comprehensive reform of the OIC the adoption of the Statute of the OIC Police Cooperation and Coordination Centre, the establishment of the OIC Consultative Council on Women, the OIC Contact Group of Friends of Mediation and the OIC Contact Group on Muslims in Europe.

14. Islamic Summit

The 14th Islamic Summit Meeting was organized under the theme “Mecca Summit: Hand in Hand Toward the Future”, and Türkiye participated in the Summit and the Council of Foreign Ministers Meeting held on 29 May 2019 with a delegation headed by Foreign Minister Çavuşoğlu.

The Summit discussed common problems concerning the Islamic World, particularly the Palestinian issue, and at the end of the Summit, the Final Declaration and the Mecca Declaration (host country declaration) were published and the Palestinian resolution was adopted. With the Summit, the Term Presidency was handed over to Saudi Arabia. The next Summit is planned to be held in The Gambia in 2024.

Parliamentary Union of OIC Member States (PUIC)

The 17th Conference of the Union of Parliaments of the OIC Member States (PUIC), hosted by Algeria, was held in Algiers on 29-30 January 2023. On this occasion, the President of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye H.E.M. Mustafa Şentop and the Head of the Turkish Delegation to the PUIC, Ardahan Deputy Orhan Atalay paid a visit to Algeria. At the conference, Türkiye handed over the chairmanship of the PUIC to Algeria."