General Secretariat

THE GENERAL SECRETARIAT

It was established by the First Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers, held in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in Muharram 1390H (February 1970).

The General Secretariat comprises a Secretary General who is the Chief Administrative Officer of the Organisation and such staff as the Organisation requires.

The Secretary General:
The Secretary General is elected by the Council of Foreign Ministers for a period of five years, renewable once only. The Secretary-General is elected from among nationals of the Member States in accordance with the principles of equitable geographical distribution, rotation and equal opportunity for all Member States with due consideration to competence, integrity and experience.

The Secretary General assumes the following responsibilities:

1. bring to the attention of the competent organs of the Organisation matters which, in his opinion, may serve or impair the objectives of the Organisation;
2. follow-up the implementation of decisions, resolutions and recommendations of the Islamic Summits, and Councils of Foreign Ministers and other Ministerial meetings;
3. provide the Member States with working papers and memoranda, in implementation of the decisions, resolutions and recommendations of the Islamic Summits and the Councils of Foreign Ministers;
4. coordinate and harmonize, the work of the relevant Organs of the Organisation;
5. prepare the programme and the budget of the General Secretariat;
6. promote communication among Member States and facilitate consultations and exchange of views as well as the dissemination of information that could be of importance to Member States;
7. perform such other functions as are entrusted to him by the Islamic Summit or the Council of Foreign Ministers;
8. submit annual reports to the Council of Foreign Ministers on the work of the Organisation.

The personalities having been elected OIC Secretaries General since the establishment of the Organization are the following:

1. H.R.H. Tunku Abdul Rahman (Malaysia) 1971-1973

2. H.E. Hassan Al-Touhami (Egypt) 1974-1975

3. H.E. Dr. Amadou Karim Gaye (Senegal) 1975-1979

4. H.E. Mr. Habib Chatty (Tunisia) 1979-1984

5. H.E. Syed Sharifuddin Pirzada (Pakistan) 1985-1988

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

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

8. H.E. Dr. Abdelouahed BELKEZIZ (Morocco) 2001-2004

9. H.E.Prof. Dr. EKMELEDDIN IHSANOGLU (Turkey) 2005 - 2013

10. H.E. Mr. Iyad Ameen Madani (Saudi Arabia) 2014 - 2016

11. H.E. Dr. Yousef bin Ahmad Al-Othaimeen (Saudi Arabia) 2016