Tashkent (GNP): The Center for Islamic Civilization in Uzbekistan has opened the International Media Forum “Islamic Civilization: New Perspective — New Discoveries,” running from August 24 to 29 across Tashkent and Samarkand.
The forum brought together foreign delegations, media executives and journalists from across the world, who arrived at Islam Karimov Tashkent International Airport on the opening day and were accommodated within the tourist complex of the Center for Islamic Civilization.
The arrival day also featured a signing ceremony between the Center and the University of Journalism and Mass Communications of Uzbekistan for a joint media platform aimed at promoting the country’s cultural heritage among young journalists, followed by a press briefing and a dinner reception that included a screening of the film “Echo of Enlightenment,” featuring Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley.
The forum’s first full day opened at the Center’s Grand Conference Hall with a special report by Claus Strunz, CEO and Editorial Director of Euronews, on integrating cultural heritage into the global information space. The first plenary session, themed “The Center for Islamic Civilization in Uzbekistan — a New Outpost of a Great Heritage,” was moderated by CNN anchor Paula Hancocks alongside Uktam Usmanov, Head of the Media Department of the Center for Islamic Civilization.
Firdavs Abdukhalikov, Director of the Center and Chairman of the Board of the World Organization for the Sustainable Cultural Understanding (WOSCU), delivered the opening report, followed by remarks from Imran Ahmad of CNN International Commercial and a series of presentations from Uzbek officials on multimedia formats for history, science and tourism, as well as a preview of “Echo of Enlightenment.”
The session closed with an international panel titled “Voices of Heritage,” featuring media leaders from Mali, Azerbaijan, Egypt, Niger, Turkey, Sudan, Yemen, Tunisia and Uzbekistan.
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The second plenary session, held the same afternoon under the theme “Great Historical Figures: New Media Formats for Popularizing Islamic Heritage,” featured presentations on documentary filmmaking, digital heritage platforms and publishing projects, including an illustrated book on historical figures in Oriental miniature and a research initiative on Timurid studies.
Notably, Muhammad Asif Noor, CEO of the Diplomatic Insight Group and Editor-in-Chief of The Diplomatic Insight, joined the closing panel discussion “Great Figures of Islamic Civilization Reimagined,” alongside editors and media directors from Kuwait, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.
The day concluded with a gala reception featuring a multimedia mapping show on the Center’s facade and the presentation of a commemorative postage stamp album on historical figures linked to the Center.
Says Firdavs Abdukhalikov, “The Center for Islamic Civilization is a new type of cultural and educational media platform.”
The forum continues in Tashkent and Samarkand through August 29, with further sessions scheduled across the remaining days.
Managing Editor at Global News Pakistan (GNP), with a Bachelor's degree in International Relations from Riphah International University, graduated with a Gold Medal. Reach out at sabahtareengnp@gmail.com
