Speech by His Highness the Aga Khan at the Graduation Ceremony of the University of Alberta

09 June 2009

Eminent Chancellor

Madame President
Mr. Chairman of the Board
Your Worship the Mayor
Faculty, Graduates, Friends and Family

What a pleasure and privilege it is to be here today, as this great university moves into its second century. I am deeply grateful for your kind invitation, for the wonderful honour you have given me, and for the rich partnership which the Aga Khan University has enjoyed with the University of Alberta. I am pleased, too, that this partnership will be extended under the new Agreement we have just signed between our two universities, along with the institutions of the Aga Khan Development Network.

My warmest congratulations go to all who graduate today and to the families, friends and faculty members who share in your proud achievements.

Full Speech @ >>> www.akdn.org



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University’s international ambitions resonate with students

The University of Alberta, which recently celebrated its centennial, is an educational epicentre to over 37 000 students in 18 different faculties. Among them are over 200 members of the University’s Ismaili Students’ Association (ISA). A self-funded, self-governing student group located at the main Edmonton campus, the ISA actively encourages its members to be positive, contributors to University society.

http://www.theismaili.org/cms/731/Universitys-international-ambitions-resonate-with-students

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Aga Khan in Berlin 2009

His Highness the Aga Khan arrived in Berlin yesterday for a two-day official visit to hold talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel, Vice-Chancellor and Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and Development Minister Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul.
The meetings focused on the expansion of activities since the signing of an agreement in 2004 between the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) to deepen cooperation in regions of mutual interest. The meetings also highlighted the need for attention to the situation in developing countries in Africa and Asia given current global economic and financial challenges.
Since the signing of the Agreement, new collaboration has occurred in five sectors, namely health, education, urban and rural development, microfinance and food security in Afghanistan, Egypt, Pakistan and Tajikistan.
In Afghanistan, AKDN’s collaboration with Germany has centred on social development , including in infrastructure, education and food security in Badakhshan and cultural projects such as the rehabilitation of Bagh e Babur, a walled and terraced garden containing the tomb of Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire.
KfW remains an important partner with both the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development and the Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance (AKAM) providing financial and technical assistance, covering Africa, Central Asia and the Middle East.
The University of Central Asia’s collaboration with the German Government and academic institutions focuses on faculty development, building capacity and increasing the scope of teaching at the University’s School of Professional and Continuing Education. Notable amongst projects in Africa on which the AKDN and Germany are partnering is the Bujagali Hydroelectric Power Plant in Uganda, the largest, independent power project in sub-Saharan Africa. The AKDN and German institutions have also begun to work on a study of immigrant communities in Germany, and on the ways in which social and economic inclusion amongst communities of immigrant origin can be more effective. This initiative would draw on the AKDN’s experience in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Tajikistan amongst other countries as well as in a number of Western countries, amongst them Portugal, the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.
The Aga Khan was last in Berlin in November 2007 when he delivered a keynote address at a conference entitled, "Central Asia and Europe: A New Economic Partnership for the 21st Century" hosted by the German Federal Foreign Office and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECA). The conference was the first major international gathering to review prospects for partnership in the region

More>>>>>> http://www.akdn.org/press_release.asp?ID=752


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Aga Khan University Signs Agreement to Further Health and Education Development in Syria

Damascus, Syria, 25 August 2008 - The Ministries of Health and Higher Education of the Government of Syria and Aga Khan University (AKU) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding to enhance capacity in the health sector. The memorandum was signed at the Office of the Prime Minister in Damascus and witnessed by Syrian Prime Minister, His Excellency Muhammad Naji Al-Otri and His Highness the Aga Khan, Imam (spiritual leader) of the Shia Ismaili Muslims. His Highness the Aga Khan is the founder and Chairman of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) and the Chancellor of the Aga Khan University. He is in Syria on a 6-day official visit.

The memorandum, which provides a framework for cooperation in nursing education and hospital quality assurance, was signed by Dr. Maher Al-Husami, Minister of Health, Dr. Ghiath Barakat, Minister of Higher Education and Mr. Firoz Rasul, President of AKU, witnessed by Mr. Mohamed Seifo, AKDN Representative in Syria.

More @ AKDN


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Aga Khan University and Catholic University of Portugal Sign Agreement of Academic Collaboration

Jointly Sighned by Aga Khan University and Catholic University of Portugal 12 July 2008 - Lisbon, Portugal - Aga Khan University (AKU) and the Catholic University of Portugal (UCP), today signed an agreement of academic collaboration as part of their efforts to foster international understanding and scholarly cooperation between diverse cultures and faiths. Areas of collaboration between the two universities will include culture, law, religion, ethics, health sciences, education and human development through joint research, training initiatives, and exchange programmes for faculty and students. Professor Manuel Braga da Cruz, Rector of the UCP and Firoz Rasul, President AKU, signed the Memorandum of Understanding at the Ismaili Centre in Lisbon.
The historic signing ceremony was attended by His Eminence D. Jose Policarpo, the Cardinal Patriarch of Lisbon and Chancellor of the University, D. José Policarpo, and His Highness the Aga Khan, Imam (Spiritual Leader) of the Ismaili Muslims and Chancellor of the AKU. Rector da Cruz and President Rasul noted that the partnership between the two Universities conveyed a collective commitment to go beyond common boundaries, to build bridges between diverse faiths and peoples by connecting different parts of the world together through the universal language of scholarship. The partnership is an opportunity to address shared concerns, identify common interests and foster greater understanding on issues of global concern.
Aga Khan University’s Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations, based in London, will lead the collaboration, working with the Faculties of Law and Theology, and the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Catholic University of Portugal. Initial projects will include comparative study of the impact of religion on the evolution of legal systems as it relates to the law of the land and its bearing on civil society; cultural studies; health sciences education and training; joint research, training and consultation on bioethics; and discussion on human development frameworks. Collaboration will include exchange programmes, research initiatives, and the organisation of symposia, lectures series, conferences, short courses and continuing education programmes.
Chartered in 1983, Aga Khan University is an institution of the Aga Khan Development Network. AKU is a private, autonomous university recognised for its research, teaching and service at an international standard in medicine, nursing, teacher education, medical care and community service. The university has campuses and programmes in eight countries in South Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa, including Faculties of Health Sciences with a Nursing School, Medical College and teaching hospitals in Karachi and Nairobi, Institutes for Educational Development in Karachi and Dar es salaam, an Examination Board and an Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations. AKU is a non-denominational institution open to all, irrespective of religion, ethnicity, gender, national origin or financial standing.
The Portuguese Catholic University is a public educational institution, established by the Congregation of Catholic Education, under the Concordat between Portugal and the Apostolic See, and recognised by the Portuguese State in 1971. It currently has approximately 11.000 students attending all three cycles of study (University degree, Masters’ degree and PhD) in all of its 4 major centres, located in Lisbon, Braga, Oporto and Viseu. It is also attended, on an annual basis, by over 2.000 professionals seeking its well reputed programmes for executives. The scientific areas developed by the University cover a variety of themes ranging from Theology to Art, Philosophy, Human Sciences, Social Sciences, Health Sciences, Engineering, Architecture, Educational Sciences, Biotechnology, Entrepreneurial Sciences, and Law. Integrated within UCP units, there are 22 study centres, Cabinets and Institutes which are essentially dedicated towards pure and applied investigation. As from 1998, the University has its own publisher, named UCEditora.

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