Jamal Muhiyuddin Alwaye spoke about Vision 2016 on behalf of K.A. Siddique Hassan, vice president of Jamaat-e-Islami and the chief architect of the massive project, which is expected to bring about a substantial improvement in the condition of Muslims in India.
“We have already implemented more than 200 educational, health, social and human resource development projects under the program,” said Professor Siddique Hassan, who attended the opening session of the three-day workshop organized by the Islamic Development Bank.Hassan, who was in the Kingdom to perform Haj as a guest of the Muslim World League, said the Vision's projects are spread over 20 north Indian states. “We are receiving encouraging support from central and state governments as well as other NGOs.”
Hassan, who is general secretary of the Human Welfare Foundation that oversees the Vision's projects, highlighted Jamaat's efforts to enhance the educational awareness of Muslims in north India. The move is significant as 40 million of the country’s children do not go to school due to poverty and ignorance.
Jamal Alwaye emphasized the importance of Vision 2016, saying 72 percent of India’s population is poor and living on a daily income of 20 rupees (SR1.5). “The most striking feature of this project is that it covers all parts of the country benefiting Muslims as well as non-Muslims,” he added.
The 10-year program, which began in 2006, includes provision of microfinance to support small and medium enterprises. It has already established a multispecialty hospital named Al-Shifa in New Delhi at a cost of 130 million rupees. “The Vision has a plan to establish a medical college,” he added.
Citing a World Bank report, Abdullah Mamoon Al-Azami, a community development specialist and chief organizer of the workshop, said there are 220 million Muslims in India, topping the list of states with the largest number of Muslims. Indonesia comes second with 190 million Muslims.
“India has become a world player,” Al-Azami said and hoped Indian Muslims would also play a leading role, making use of their material, intellectual and manpower resources. He described the Vision 2016 as a major initiative to empower Muslims in the country.
Representatives of NGOs taking part in the workshop spoke about their various educational, health, social and capacity building projects. They also explained the arrival and spread of Islam and the condition of Muslims in their respective countries.
Ziad Ahmed Saifi of Brazil emphasized the need for more Islamic educational institutions in the country in order to enlighten Muslims about their religion. He said a number of mosques had been closed down in the past after several Muslims converted to Christianity. He reported substantial improvement in the condition Brazilian Muslims today. "We have bought two churches and transformed them into mosques," he added.
Aisha Lemu of the Federation of Muslim Women's Association in Nigeria spoke about her organization's social and educational activities in the Niger state. "We have been working to empower women through education," she said. "We also organize a number of training programs for capacity building in order to prepare manpower for leading and running our programs." Lemu's federation also promotes dialogue with Christian organizations.
Dr. Hosany Basheer Nizaam, the first beneficiary of IDB scholarship program in Mauritius, explained his NGO's various health services for the community. "We have established a mobile clinic that visits areas of the poor to provide them with free consultation." His team also gives free medical checkup for pilgrims going for Haj and free training for young doctors and cares terminally ill patients.
