The Secretary-General of the Muslim Council of Elders, Judge Mohammad Abdelsalam has visited the headquarters of the World Council of Churches in Geneva, Switzerland, upon an official invitation from Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay, the Secretary-General of the World Council of Churches.

During the visit, the two parties discussed enhancing cooperation in the field of interreligious dialogue as well as the role of religious leaders in addressing current global challenges, particularly climate change in light of the upcoming COP28 conference, which will be hosted by the United Arab Emirates at the end of the year.

Judge Abdelsalam and Dr. Pillay also discussed ways to promote and enhance peace in Africa as well as the final preparations for the second edition of the Emerging Peacemakers Forum, which will be held in partnership between the Muslim Council of Elders, the World Council of Churches, and the Rose Castle Foundation in July. The forum is set to feature the participation of 50 young people from the East and the West with the aim of producing future generations of youth that are capable of positively contributing to international peacebuilding.

At the meeting’s conclusion, the Secretary-General along with other senior figures of the World Council of Churches praised the efforts of the Muslim Council of Elders, under the chairmanship of His Eminence Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar in promoting the values of tolerance, coexistence, and interreligious and intercultural dialogue. They also expressed their full support for all interreligious dialogue efforts and initiatives planned during the upcoming COP28 conference, which will be held in the United Arab Emirates at the end of the current year. The Secretary-General of the Muslim Council of Elders, for his part, emphasized that the World Council of Churches serves as a model for how religious organisations should collaborate in promoting the values of dialogue, tolerance, and global peace.