Jeddah (UNA) – Dr. Hadi bin Ali Al-Yami, Executive Director of the Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, expressed his hope that the 26th regular session of the Commission, which began its work on Sunday, December 14, 2025, and will continue until December 18, will constitute a qualitative addition to the process of promoting human rights in the countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and will consolidate the approach of partnership and joint institutional work.
In his welcoming remarks to the session, which is being held under the title “Youth Development in the OIC Countries: Challenges and Opportunities from a Human Rights Perspective”, Al-Yami expressed his sincere thanks and appreciation to the wise leadership of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, represented by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, for the generous and continuous support that the Kingdom provides to the Commission and for hosting it, which reflects a firm commitment to supporting the human rights system and joint Islamic action.
He also emphasized that the presence of His Excellency Mr. Niyazi Akar, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkey, embodies the depth of the Republic of Turkey’s commitment to supporting the work of the Authority.
He praised the efforts of Dr. Haji Ali Acikjol, the head of the commission, during his term, and what he contributed to developing its work, announcing that His Excellency Dr. Saido Dogon Guida would assume the presidency of the commission for 2026, stressing the endeavor to work with him to strengthen the commission’s mandate, welcoming the new members and their contribution of their expertise in supporting the human rights movement in the Islamic world.
Al-Yami explained that the commission continued in the past period to interact with urgent human rights issues, and held an emergency session to address serious humanitarian repercussions, confirming its readiness and responsibility.
The Authority also strengthened its institutional partnerships by signing two Memoranda of Understanding with the Islamic Organization for Food Security and the Islamic Solidarity Fund, in support of economic and social rights, foremost among them the right to food and sustainable development.
Within the framework of institutional development, he affirmed that the Authority has begun preparing a strategic plan for the next phase as a roadmap that enables it to achieve its mission and objectives and meet aspirations and expectations, based on clarity of mandate, strengthening governance, developing work mechanisms, parallel openness to all member states, taking into account benchmarking with similar institutions, in addition to expanding partnerships with national institutions and civil society, and enhancing the practical impact of the Authority’s programs and recommendations.
He explained that the Authority is working to enhance its human capabilities by supporting it with specialized personnel in the field of human rights, and in parallel with that, coordinating with the General Secretariat of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation to develop the digital infrastructure, enhance cybersecurity, and support the path of digital transformation, which raises the efficiency of performance and enhances communication with member states. He pointed out that the past period also witnessed the strengthening of cooperation with the Union of News Agencies of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation States through the activation of the signed memorandum of understanding, which includes supporting professional media coverage, exchanging content and experiences, strengthening communication channels with member states, and highlighting priority human rights issues. In this context, he expressed his thanks and appreciation to the Union for its cooperation and support for the Authority’s efforts.
Within the framework of this session's theme, the Executive Director of the Authority pointed to four key areas that deserve common attention:
Technology and Inclusion
• Governance and youth participation
Skills development
– Standard protection frameworks, in line with regional and international human rights standards.
Dr. Hadi Al-Yami expressed his deep gratitude to all member states for their clear commitment to supporting the organization's efforts. He specifically thanked the Republic of Turkey and the Republic of Azerbaijan for their generous voluntary support, which will have a direct impact on enabling the organization to carry out its increasing tasks and expand the scope of participation and cooperation. He expressed his hope that the work of this session will be successful and that its deliberations will contribute to strengthening partnerships, improving the organization's performance, and serving the aspirations of the peoples of the member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
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