Last Sunday, the UQU campus hosted the 28th Annual Meeting of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Committee for Da`wah in Africa. The event was held under the title "The Role of the Two Holy Mosques in Africa: Between Reality and Aspiration." The meeting was attended by the Chairman of the Committee, His Royal Highness Prince Bandar bin Salman bin Muhammad Al Saud, and His Excellency the UQU President, Prof. Abdullah bin Omar Bafail, along with a group of vice deans, officials, academics, and Islamic preachers.

Prince Dr. Bandar bin Salman pointed out that Umm Al-Qura University has played a pivotal role in the field of Da`wah across the African continent. Prominent among its achievements has been the education of many preachers of these countries, who returned to their homeland bearing the moderate message of Islam. He praised its role in graduating and qualifying scholars, preachers, and students of science through its educational programs, such as the Scholarship Program, which aims to teach the Arabic language to foreign students and provide them with adequate knowledge of Shari`ah and correct understanding of the Islamic creed. The scholarship students then return to their country after being sufficiently qualified to practice Da`wah to take up their preaching role according to the moderate Islamic doctrine.

Prince Bandar affirmed that the Kingdom, under the leadership of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Suad, and his faithful Crown Prince, are among the major supporters of the Islamic call, especially on the African continent. Next, Dr. Hasan Bukhari, the Dean of the Institute of Arabic Language for Non-Native Speakers, delivered a lecture on the theme "The Role of the Two Holy Mosques in Africa: Between Reality and Aspiration." He spoke about the ambassadors of knowledge and Da`wah in the Two Holy Mosques and Africa, the visits conducted by the Imams of the Two Holy Mosques to Africa, the overall enrichment role being played in Da`wah, and the services provided by the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques to the pilgrims and visitors, in particular the multilingual translation of speeches.

Following his talk was the address by Sheikh Tchagouni Adjemini, a graduate of Umm Al-Qura University. He briefly emphasized that this year's forum theme was to recognize the great efforts exerted by the Two Holy Mosques to Muslims in Africa. He then extended his thanks to the Government of Saudi Arabia, especially the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and His Highness the Crown Prince (may Allah protect them) for the great services being offered to Islam and Muslims in all parts of the world.

His Excellency the UQU President expressed appreciation for the role of scholars and preachers in spreading the message of Islam on the African continent; they work as an extension of former senior preachers who left significant imprints on the history of the Islamic Ummah through their contributions in this field. He stressed that such blessed meetings, run by the Da`wah Committee in Africa under the chairmanship of His Royal Highness Prince Bandar bin Salman bin Muhammad Al Saud, set a distinguished example in the domain of charitable Da`wah work. The Committee seeks, through these visits, to strengthen brotherly communication between scholars and preachers in Africa with their fellow scholars and preachers in the Saudi Kingdom, which indeed positively contributes to their performance as preachers of Islam. Finally, he stressed the university's full cooperation with the Committee and praised the role performed by those in charge of the Institute of Arabic Language for Non-Native Speakers in this field.