FUIW Internal Regulations

Article 1 : Name and definition

• a) Name: The Federation of the Universities of the Islamic World. It is hereinafter referred to as the Federation (FUIW).
• b) Definition: The Federation of the Universities of the Islamic World is a body working within the framework of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO), and is specialized in promoting higher education institutions, furthering cooperation and coordination as well as strengthening partnership among Member Universities.

Article 2 : Headquarters
The Federation shall have its headquarters in ISESCO. It may
change its headquarters or set up national or regional branches by decision from the General Conference and the Executive Council and on proposal of the Secretary General.

Article 3 : Languages
The working languages of the Federation shall be Arabic, English and French.

Article 4 : Objectives

• a) Furthering cooperation among Member Universities and encouraging the exchange of experiences, studies, programmes and visits in the fields of education, science, technology, culture and communication;
• b)Stepping up the efforts of higher education institutions to
  address current issues and entrench the values of understanding,coexistence and peace among the peoples of the Islamic Ummah and the world as a whole;
• c) Improving quality and innovation standards in Member Universities and developing educational and research performance tools in line with the Islamic Ummah’s civilizational constants;
• d)Enhancing the level of scientific research in all fields, exchanging their findings, and linking them with the developmental and civilizational requirements of the Islamic Ummah;
• e) Upgrading Member Universities’ knowledge and human capacities;
• f) Encouraging the teaching of the language of the Holy Quran and the Islamic culture in Member Universities;
• g)Caring for the Islamic heritage by publicizing, translating and authenticating it, and shedding light on the contribution of its scholars to human civilizational edification.

Article 5 : Means

• a) Preparing studies, research works and reference guides to develop Member universities ;
• b) Working towards establishing universities or specialized university institutions;
• c) Assessing universities’ performance to upgrade their quality, inno-vation and accreditation standards;
• d) Helping find practical instruments and joint programmes for granting scholarships to students, researchers, faculty members and trainees of Member Universities;
• e) Holding conferences, sessions, symposia and workshops for continuous training in Member Universities.

Article 6 : Membership

• a) Membership in the Federation shall be open to all national universities and similar higher education institutions inside or outside the Islamic world, which are eligible for membership.
• b) The Executive Council shall consider the applications for membership, take the appropriate decisions regarding these applications and submit them to the General Conference for adoption.
• c) All members shall enjoy the same rights, and shall have the same obligations.
• d) The Member Universities pledge to work for the achievement of the Federation’s objectives and to settle their membership fees and annual subscription.
• e) On proposal by the General Secretariat, the Executive Council shall be entitled to decide to suspend the membership of a member, temporarily or definitively, if at least one membership condition is not met, or if the member fails to pay membership fees for three consecutive years. The Council’s decision shall be subject to endorsement by the General Conference.

Eligibility for membership :
The university or similar higher institutions applying for membership in the Federation must fulfil the following conditions:

• a) To be recognized, along with the degrees they award, by the higher education authorities of the country in which they operate.
• b) The students applying for enrolment therein must hold the General Certificate of Education (GCE), or its equivalent, and those applying for enrolment in higher studies therein must hold the first university degree, or its equivalent.
• c) The term of study therein must correspond to the educational systems in force locally or internationally.
• d) One class at least must have graduated from the applicant institution after its inception.

Article 7 : Immunities
The Federation, its officials, personnel, premises, offices, documents and mail shall enjoy the protection, immunities and privileges enjoyed by the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation as well as those stipulated by the current Headquarters Agreement signed between the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) and the Government of the Kingdom of Morocco, or the Agreement signed between the Federation and the authorities of the new seat country in case of its change, or national or regional branches in the event of their establishment.

Article 8:
The Federation is made up of the following :

• a) The General Conference.
• b) The Executive Council.
• c) The General Secretariat.

Article 9: The General Conference

• a) The General Conference shall be made up of the Vice-Chancellors, rectors and presidents of Universities and similar higher education institutions, or their substitutes.
• b) Composition of the Conference Bureau:
  The General Conference shall elect, in each session, its President, three Vice-Presidents, one Rapporteur and the Chairmen of the Conference Committees, who, in addition to the Chairman of the Executive Council, shall all constitute the General Conference Bureau.
• c) Resolutions:
  Each member shall be entitled to one vote only. Resolutions shall be adopted by a simple majority of attending and voting members, subject to Article (18) of the Charter.
• d) Meetings of the General Conference:
  The General Conference shall meet in a regular session once every three years. It may meet in a special session in accordance with the:
  – resolution of the General Conference;
  – request by the Executive Council;
  – request by one-third of the Member Universities;
  – request by the Federation’s Secretary General, supported with the approval of at least thirty Members.

e) Attendance of the Conference:
The Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, or his representative, shall have the right to attend the General Conference. The institutions emanating from the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, parallel federations and institutions may be allowed to attend the meetings of the General Conference, as Observers.

Article 10: Functions of the Conference
The General Conference shall be empowered to:

• 1- Lay down the Federation’s general policy;
• 2- Adopt the Federation’s action plans, programmes, provisional budget and the projects of their implementation;
• 3- Discuss the reports and proposals put forward by Member Universities as well as the recommendations issued by the Executive Council and take appropriate action thereon;
• 4- Discuss and adopt the draft action plan and budget of the Federation and adopt its annual financial reports;
• 5- Amend and adopt the internal rules of procedure of the Conference as well as the Financial Regulations of the Federation and its Personnel Regulations, and build on the regulations in force at ISESCO;
• 6- Consider all issues which do not fall within the competence of any other organ of the Federation;
• 7- Adopt the Rules of Procedure of the General Conference; 148- Set up ad-hoc committees to carry out specific studies;
• 9- Endorse the appointment of the Secretary General of the Federation at the first session after his nomination as Director General of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO), in accordance with the provisions of Article (12), paragraph (b), of the Charter;
• 10- Elect the members of the Executive Council of the Federation.

Article 11: The Executive Council
A- Composition of the Council:

• 1- The Executive Council shall be made up of fifteen universities, to be elected by the General Conference for a three-year term, on proposal by the Conference Bureau, taking into consideration geographical distribution and the regular payment of membership fees, at least for the last three years before their election.
• 2- Each Member University in the Executive Council shall appoint its representative by sending an official letter, signed by the President of the Member University, to the Secretary General along with a C.V of the representative.

B- Attendance of the Council:

• 1- The President of the General Conference may, ex-officio, attend the sessions of the Executive Council.
• 2- The Secretary General of the Federation, or his representative, shall attend the meetings of the Council. The Secretary General shall also invite his assistants and representatives of the external bodies of the Federation to attend these meetings in order to provide explanations in connection with their fields of competence. 153- The Council shall elect its Chairman and three Vice-Chairmen and a Rapporteur.
• 4- The Executive Council shall meet, in a regular session, once a year in a place and time decided upon in the previous meeting.

C- Functions of the Council:
The Executive Council shall:

• 1- Adopt the draft agenda of the General Conference meetings in accordance with the proposal of the Secretary General;
• 2-Examine academic and financial reports and the Federation’s draft action plans and budget, and submit the relevant recommendations thereon to the General Conference;
• 3-Adopt the draft action plan and budget of the Federation as well as the specialized projects proposed by the Member Universities or the Secretary General;
• 4-Consider applications for membership in the Federation and recommend the General Conference to take the appropriate decision thereon;
• 5-Consider the proposals of Member Universities with respect to the amendment of the Federation’s Charter provided that the proposals be submitted two months prior to the Council meeting;
• 6-Take all necessary measures, according to the resolutions of the General Conference, to ensure effective implementation of the Federation’s programmes by the Secretary General;
• 7-Lay down the Rules of Procedure of the Executive Council and its functions;
• 8-Propose the Federation’s internal regulations except those falling under the competence of the General Conference.

Article 12: The General Secretariat

• a) The General Secretariat shall be made up of an administrative and technical setup headed by the Secretary General, in accordance with an organizational chart proposed by the Secretary General and adopted by the Executive Council and the General Conference.
• b) The General Secretariat shall be headed by a Secretary General, whose election is endorsed by the General Conference for a three-year renewable term. The Director General of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) shall assume ex-officio the tasks of the Secretary General of the Federation.
• c) The Secretary General shall be the head of the administrative setup of the Federation and shall be accountable to the Executive Council and the General Conference. He shall have direct authority over the entire staff of the General Secretariat.
• d) In case of vacancy of the office of the Secretary General as a result of resignation, disablement or any other reason, the normal running of the General Secretariat and follow-up to the implementation of programmes shall be entrusted to the senior officer in the Secretariat until a new Director General of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) is elected.

Functions of the General Secretariat:
The General Secretariat shall assume the following functions:

• a) Prepare the documents for the meetings of the General Conference and the Executive Council, and supervise the organization of these meetings;
• b) Prepare the Federation’s draft plan and budget as well as the annual academic, financial and administrative reports and submit them to the Executive Council and the General Conference;
• c) Implement the Federation’s activities and follow up the implementation of the decisions of the Executive Council and the resolutions of the General Conference;
• d) Coordinate with the parallel institutions to present the activities of the Federation and highlight its role in the sustainable development of the Islamic world countries.

Article 13: The Budget

• a) The budget shall be prepared for three years and implemented each year starting from January 1 st to the end of December of the same year. It shall be implemented after its adoption by the General Conference, in accordance with the Federation’s Financial Regulations.
• b) The Secretary General shall prepare an annual report on the budget and the closing account, to be submitted to the Executive Council session following the Council session coming after the closing of the financial year. The report on the financial year shall include the Secretary General’s proposals concerning budget implementation as well as his observations on the closing account.

Article 14: Resources
The resources of the Federation shall include:

• 1- Subscription fees and contributions of Member Universities, in addition to revenues from the Federation’s publications. The General Conference shall set up the amount of subscription fees and contributions.
• 2- Resources secured from cooperation agreements concluded between the Federation and other parties.
• 3- Subsidies, donations and endowments (waqf) provided by the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO), Member Universities, non-Member Universities, institutions, individuals or any other resources.

Article 15: Expenditures
The expenditures of the Federation shall be incurred for such purposes as the following:

• 1- Commitments resulting from previous contracts, resolutions or programmes of a binding nature for the Federation.
• 2- Subsidies and assistance to institutions and organizations under its supervision.
• 3- Commitments resulting from projects undertaken jointly with governmental or non-governmental partners.
• 4- Obligations towards permanent and commissioned staff.

Article 16: The Accounts
The Secretary General shall prepare, under the supervision of the Executive Council, the closing account and submit it to the regular session of the General Conference.

Article 17:
The financial services of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) shall manage the Federation’s finances according to ISESCO’s regulations, provided it does not contradict FUIW’s regulations.

Article 18: Amendments

• 1- The amendments proposed to this Charter shall become effective as soon as they are approved by a two-thirds majority of the General Conference.
• 2- The General Conference shall have the right to adopt, through a two-thirds majority vote, the necessary regulations for the enforcement of the provisions of this Article.

Article 19:
This Charter shall be kept in the archives of the General Directorate of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO).

Article 20: Arbitration
In the event of dispute or conflict regarding the interpretation of this Charter, the interpretation supported by two of the working languages of the Federation, one of which being Arabic, shall prevail. In case this condition is not fulfilled, the original text shall prevail. When necessary, the dispute shall be referred to an arbitration committee to be set up by the General Conference, upon recommendation of the Executive Council.

DEFINITIONS
In these regulations, it is meant by:

• – Federation: The Federation of the Universities of the Islamic World.
• – Member Universities: The Member Universities of the Federation.
• – Charter: The Charter of the Federation.
• – General Conference: The General Conference of the Federation.
• – Executive Council: The Executive Council of the Federation.
• – Secretary General: The Secretary General of the Federation
• – The Action Plan: the general three-year Action Plan of the Federation.
• – The Budget: The financial programme for the implementation of the Action Plan.
• – The Financial Year: the period from 1 st January to 31 st December.

Article 1:
The budget is the three-year financial programme of the Federation of the Universities of the Islamic World. It shall be drawn up in three annual sections for the implementation of the items of the budget adopted by the General Conference.

Article 2:
The budget shall include all expenditures and receipts related to the various activities of the Federation.
As regards expenditure, budget estimates shall be set in the light of the needs to be fulfilled within the framework of those activities.
As regards receipts, the budget shall show all expected income.

Article 3:
In laying down the budget, due account shall be taken of the administrative structures of the Federation and of the specific nature of its programmes.

Article 4:
Budget estimates shall be apportioned into entries, headings, articles, items and, if necessary, sub-items.

Article 5:
Receipt and expenditure estimates shall be in US dollars.

Article 6:
In addition to receipts, expenditures and any related annexes and explanatory documents, the budget shall include an explanatory memorandum which may be presented by the Secretary General with regard to collection of Member Universities’ contributions and, if necessary, the reasons which may have prevented the implementation of the action plan.

Article 7:
The Secretary General shall draw up the draft budget and submit it to the Executive Council for consideration, before referring it to the General Conference for adoption.

Article 8:
Following consideration of the draft budget by the Executive Council, the Secretary General shall send it out to Member Universities at least one month before the meeting of the General Conference, along with the supporting documents and the relevant analytical studies.

Article 9:
The budget shall be financed from:

• a) the contributions of Member Universities;
• b) the available funds proceeding from transfer of the credit balance of the previous financial year;
• c) subsidies, grants, investments, real estate, donations and endowments (waqf) from institutions or individuals, provided their objectives are consonant with those of the Federation. Donations for no specific purposes shall be deposited in an account called “Account of Miscellaneous Receipts”.

Article 10:
When a new University joins the Federation after commencement of the financial year, it shall pay its full membership fees and annual subscription for that financial year. This contribution shall be deposited in the «Account of Miscellaneous Receipts».

Article 11:
A reserve account whose capital and financing means shall be
determined by the General Conference, may be opened so as
to enable the Secretary General to use the necessary funds for
expenditures which fall due before the collection of the subscription fees of Member Universities.
In this case, the funds withdrawn shall be considered as a loan which will be paid back into the reserve account when the Account of Miscellaneous Receipts has been replenished with available funds.

Article 12:
Subject to the approval of the Executive Council, the Secretary General may suggest to the General Conference that funds specifically aimed at financing particular projects be set up.

Article 13:
The Account of Miscellaneous Receipts, the reserve accounts and
the funds for specific projects shall be managed according to the provisions of the present Financial Regulations.

Article 14:
The expenditures of the Federation shall be governed by the provisions of Article (15) of the Charter.

Article 15:
Upon its adoption by the General Conference, the budget shall
come into force, with backdated effect if necessary, for a period of three consecutive years. Each year shall start on the 1 st of January and end on the 31 st of December.

Article 16:
Should the General Conference fail to adopt the budget before the beginning of the new three-year period, the Secretary General shall issue instructions for expenditures to be made within the limit of 3/12 of budget appropriations for the previous financial year (except for the amounts due for payment) until adoption of the budget by the Executive Council, prior to its adoption by the General Conference at its following meeting. The said meeting shall take place at the end
of March of the first year of the new three-year period, at the latest.
The following three-year budget shall be backdated to the 1 st of January, in accordance with Article (13) of the Charter.

Article 17:
Upon its adoption, the budget shall be notified to Member Universities in detail, along with the ensuing commitments and administrative procedures.

Article 18:
Adoption of the budget by the General Conference shall empower the Secretary General to use the allocated credits for the achievement of the objectives and programmes approved by the General Conference.

Article 19:
The Secretary General shall take the necessary measures for the
purpose of book-keeping and preparing the annual accounts,
showing:

• – expenditures and receipts, whatever their source;
• – situation of approved credits;
• – assets and liabilities.

The Secretary General shall submit the annual report on the budget to the Executive Council for consideration at the second Council session following the end of the financial year.

Article 20:
There shall be no transfer of credits from one entry to another, or from one heading to another, nor any overspending of the credits allocated to any entry or heading, nor any expenditures incurred outside budget appropriations, except with the consent of the Executive Council and the subsequent approval of the General Conference. However, the Secretary General may, should the need arise, transfer credits within the same heading:

• – from one article to another, up to 25% of the funds available;
• – from one item to another, without any set limitation. This transfer shall not, however, exceed the general framework nor the objectives of the Action Plan adopted by the General Conference. The Executive Council shall be informed of the transfer at the first meeting following the transfer decision.

Article 21:
Subject to the approval of the Executive Council, the Secretary
General may undertake the following within the framework of the
provisions of the Charter and the Action Plan:

• – incur loans in the name of the Federation;
• – conclude financial liability contracts which would necessitate the incurring of expenditures after the end of the financial period.

Article 22:
Subject to the approval of the Executive Council, the Secretary
General may postpone or suspend the implementation of any item
of the budget if he sees that it would be difficult to fully implement it financially.
The credits concerned shall be frozen and the relevant reasons
shall be listed in a memorandum to be presented to the General
Conference in due time. Those reasons shall also be included in
the memorandum on the closing accounts of the year for which the credits were allocated.

Article 23:
The Secretary General shall prepare an annual report on the closing accounts, showing the receipts and expenditures of the financial year concerned and illustrating the financial situation of the Federation.
The closing accounts, together with the decisions of the Executive Council, shall be submitted to the General Conference along with the report of the Secretary General on the implementation of the budget.

Article 24:
The present Regulations shall come into force upon their approval by the Executive Council and their adoption by the General Conference.

Article 25:
The General Conference may amend these Regulations in accordance with the Charter.

In these Rules of Procedure, it is meant by:
– Federation: The Federation of the Universities of the Islamic World.
– Member Universities: The Member Universities of the Federation.
– Charter: The Charter of the Federation.
– General Conference: The General Conference of the Federation.
– Executive Council: The Executive Council of the Federation.
– Rules of Procedure: The Rules of Procedure of the General Conference of the Federation.
– President: The President of the General Conference of the Federation.
– Members: The representatives of the Member Universities in the General Conference.
– Secretary General: The Secretary General of the Federation
– General Secretariat: The General Secretariat of the Federation.

Article 1:
The delegations representing Member Universities shall be, each, composed of two members at the most, specialized in education, science, technology, culture and communication, either of them is the President (Rector) of the University or his representative. The accreditation documents shall be signed by the relevant University and shall be sent before the convening of the Conference.

Article 2:
The Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) or his representative shall have the right to attend the General Conference.

Article 3:
The members of the Executive Council shall attend the General Conference.

Article 4:
Parallel unions and institutions as well as invited academic figures may attend the General Conference as observers without the right to vote, in accordance with the provisions of Article (9, e) of the Charter.

Article 5:
The Secretary General of the Federation shall attend the regular and extraordinary sessions of the General Conference. The Secretary General shall specify the staff who attend by virtue of their area of competence and duties.

Article 6:
The regular sessions of the General Conference shall be held every three years, in light of previous resolutions of the Conference.
The General Conference may meet in an extraordinary session in accordance with the provisions of Article (9, d) of the Charter.

Article 7:
The General Conference shall hold open meetings or meet in camera when deemed appropriate.

Article 8:
a) The General Conference shall elect in each session the President and the other members of its Bureau. The proceedings of the General Conference shall be conducted by the outgoing President until a new President is elected. The Bureau shall be made up of the President, three Vice-Presidents, a General Rapporteur and the chairmen of the committees set up by the General Conference, in addition to the Chairman of the Executive Council.
b) The Chairman of the Executive Council or, in case of his absence, the acting chairman, shall attend the meetings of the Bureau of the General Conference, without right to vote.
c) The Bureau shall discharge the following tasks :
– schedule plenary sessions;
– coordinate the proceedings of the Conference, its committees and its subsidiary bodies;
– assist the President in steering the proceedings of the session.

Article 9:
a) In case of absence of the President, the presidency shall be entrusted to the senior Vice-President, following the order of hierarchy of the Bureau. In case of absence of the three Vice-presidents, the presidency shall be entrusted to the Rapporteur.
b) In case of vacancy of the President’s position for any reason, the presidency shall be entrusted to one of the Vice-Presidents as per their order in the Bureau of the Conference or the Rapporteur, as stated in the previous paragraph. The Conference shall select its President at the close of its meeting.

Article 10:
In each one of its sessions, the General Conference shall set up, if need be or on proposal by the Secretary General, a committee, or any other committees, which the General Conference deems necessary for the smooth conduct of its proceedings and full consideration of the agenda items. Each Committee shall elect its Chairman, Vice-Chairman and Rapporteur.

Article 11: Proceedings
a) The President of the General Conference shall conduct the
proceedings on the questions under consideration according to
the adopted agenda.
b) The President shall give the floor in accordance with the order of requests. Priority may be granted, if need be, to a Chairman or Rapporteur of one of the Conference’s committees.
c) Any Member University may raise a point of order which shall be settled at once by the President so long as his ruling is not challenged by the majority of the members present at the General Conference session.

Article 12: Voting
a) Only the Member Universities shall have the right to vote at the General Conference. A consensus shall always be sought for the adoption of resolutions and recommendations. But the Conference may resort to voting if necessary.
b) Each Member University shall have one vote in the General Conference or in the Committees in which it serves as member, regardless of the number of the Member Universities it represents.
c) Voting shall be generally by show of hands or by a roll-call if requested by a Member University or when the President deems that the former procedure gives no clear picture of a majority. A vote by secret ballot may be taken if necessary.
d) Any Member University may abstain from voting, or make reservations on a resolution or part thereof. Reservations shall be read out and put on record in the session’s report after the said resolution.
e) The overall number of the votes of Member Universities from one country shall not exceed the tenth (1/10) of the expressed votes.

Article 13:
In light of Article (10) of the Charter, the General Conference shall be in charge of the following:

• a) Lay down the general policy of the Federation, its action plans and programmes and ensure follow-up to their implementation;
• b) Discuss the reports and proposals put forward by Member Universities as well as the recommendations issued by the Executive Council and take appropriate action thereon;
• c) Adopt the Rules of Procedure of the General Conference;
• d) Amend and adopt the internal regulations of the General Conference as well as the Financial Regulations of the Federation and staff-related regulations;
• e) Consider all issues which do not fall within the competence of any other body of the Federation;
• f) Discuss and adopt the draft budget and programmes as well as the closing accounts of the Federation;
• g) Set up ad-hoc committees to carry out specific studies;
• h) Elect the Member Universities of the Executive Council upon the recommendation of the General Conference Bureau;
• i) Endorse the arbitration committee recommended by the Executive Council, in light of Article (20) of the Charter;
• j) Endorse the election of the Federation’s Secretary General at its first session convened after his election as Director General of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO).

Article 14:
The Secretary General shall prepare the draft agenda of the regular sessions of the General Conference and shall send it out to Member Universities along with the relevant documents, at least one month before the Conference and shall send out invitation letters to attend the Conference two months prior to its meeting.

Article 15:
The draft agenda shall include :
– the report of the Executive Council
– the report of the Secretary General on the Federation’s activities between the two sessions
– the draft Action Plan and Budget
– academic, financial and administrative reports falling under the competence of the Conference
– the items which the General Conference had decided, in a previous session, to include in the agenda
– the items proposed by the Executive Council or the Secretary General, including the proposals submitted by the Member Universities through the General Secretariat and the Executive Council
– Election of Member Universities in the Executive Council
– Endorse the election of the Federation’s Secretary General.

Article 16:
Should an additional item be included in the agenda before the convening of the General Conference, the Secretary General shall inform the Member Universities thereof.

Article 17:
The General Conference shall adopt its agenda at each regular session, taking into account the decisions of the Executive Council in this matter.

Article 18:
The General Conference may amend or delete, at any one of its sessions, certain agenda items subject to the approval of the simple majority.

Article 19:
The agenda of an extraordinary session shall cover only the questions which warranted the meeting, unless the General Conference decides otherwise by an absolute majority.

Article 20:
The resolutions and recommendations of the General Conference shall be sent out by the Secretary General to all the Member Universities within two months after the closing of the General Conference session.
The resolutions and recommendations adopted by the General Conference may be published or broadcast by the President of the General Conference or by the Secretary General unless the majority of attending and voting members decide otherwise.

Article 21:
The Secretary General shall draw up the minutes for each session in extenso and send out copies thereof to the Member Universities if possible. The minutes shall be kept at the Federation’s headquarters for reference purposes if need be.

Article 22:
The Secretary General and his assistants shall participate in all proceedings of the General Conference and its Committees by providing information, studies and clarifications about the agenda items.

Article 23:
The Secretary General shall be responsible for organizational work of the regular and extraordinary sessions of the General Conference. He shall prepare all the relevant documents.

Article 24:
The Secretary General shall be responsible for the Secretariat of the General Conference as well as the preparation of the minutes, the adopted resolutions and recommendations.

Article 25:
The Director General of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) shall be appointed Secretary General of the Federation. His nomination shall be endorsed by the General Conference at its first session convened after his election as ISESCO Director General, as per Article (12, b) of the Charter.

Article 26:
Each member shall bear his own travel expenses to attend the Conference meetings or to fulfill other tasks entrusted to him. He shall also bear his accommodation expenses unless they are borne by the hosting party.

Article 27:
The present Rules of Procedure shall be amended only by a two-thirds majority of Member Universities. No request for amending or deleting any provision therein shall be considered unless it is presented to the Executive Council for decision and submitted to the General Conference.

Article 28:
The Rules of Procedure of the General Conference shall come into force upon their adoption by the General Conference.

In these Rules of Procedure, it is meant by:
– Federation: The Federation of the Universities of the Islamic World
-FUIW-.
– Member Universities: The Member Universities of the Federation.
– Charter: The Charter of the Federation.
– General Conference: The General Conference of the Federation.
– President of the General Conference: The President of the
General Conference of the Federation.
– The Council: The Executive Council of the Federation.
– Rules of Procedure: The Rules of Procedure of the Executive
Council of the Federation.
– Chairman: The Chairman of the Council.
– Members: The representatives of the Member Universities in the Council.
– Secretary General: The Secretary General of the Federation.
– General Secretariat: The General Secretariat of the Federation

Article 1:
The Council shall be set up according to the provisions of Article (11, a) of the Charter. It shall be made up of the representatives of the Member Universities of the Federation.

Article 2:
The Council shall be made up of the representatives of fifteen
Member Universities, elected by the General Conference for a period of three years, with consideration of the geographical balance and the regular payment of their universities’ contributions at least for the last three years before their election. The renewal of the Council shall be made during the first General Conference session following the end of the Council’s period.

Article 3:
a) Each Member University in the Executive Council shall appoint its representative by sending an official letter, signed by the President of the Member University, to the Secretary General of the Federation along with a C.V of the representative.
b) The Chairman of the Executive Council, in coordination with the President of the General Conference and on proposal by the Secretary General, may change the membership of a university to the Council and substitute it with another university, in case 25its representative is not appointed within three months after its election, or in the event its representative is absent for two consecutive Council sessions.

Article 4:
a) The President of the General Conference shall ex-officio attend the Council meetings.

Article 5:
a) The Secretary General, or his representative, shall attend the Council meetings. The Secretary General shall invite his assistants to attend the Council meetings in order to give explanations falling within their field of competence.
b) The Secretary General shall conduct the work of the Council secretariat. He shall be assisted in this concern by staff under his authority.

Article 6:
a) The Chairman of the Council shall have the right to invite, in coordination with the Secretary General, officials, experts and specialists to attend the Council meetings as and when necessary.
b) The Secretary General shall have the right to invite officials, experts and specialists to attend Council meetings as and when necessary.

Article 7:
The Council shall meet in plenary sessions, unless it decides to hold them in camera. In case the Council meets in camera, only the Secretary General and the responsible for the Secretariat of the Council shall be authorized to attend these meetings.

Article 8:
Council meetings are valid only when the quorum is reached, that is half the members plus one.

Article 9:
The Council shall meet at least once a year and may meet in a special session in the following cases:

• a) upon a decision made by the Council itself during a previous regular session;
• b) at the invitation of the Chairman and the approval of at least one third of the members, provided the invitation is received one month before the date set for the session;
• c) at the invitation of the Secretary General and the approval of at least one third of the members, provided that the invitation is received a month before the date set for the session.

Article 10:
At each one of its sessions, the Council shall determine the date and venue of the following session.

Article 11:

• a) The Executive Council shall meet in a procedural session, after each regular session of the General Conference, to elect its Bureau.
• b) The Bureau shall consist of a Chairman, three Vice-Chairmen and a Rapporteur. Members of the Bureau shall remain in office until the end of the next regular session of the General Conference, taking into account balance among the Member Universities of the Federation.

Article 12:

• a) In case of absence of the Chairman, the chairmanship shall be entrusted to the senior Vice-Chairman, following the order of hierarchy of the Bureau. In case of absence of the three Vice-Chairmen, the chairmanship shall be entrusted to the Rapporteur.
• b) In case of vacancy of the Chairman’s position for any reason,the chairmanship shall be entrusted to the Vice-Chairman or the Rapporteur, as stated in the previous paragraph, and the Council shall select a new chairman at the end of that session.
• c) In case of vacancy of any other position in the Council Bureau, the Council shall select a substitute at the following Council session.

Article 13:
The Chairman shall open and close the Council sessions and meetings.He shall also:

• – give the floor to the members in turn and according to the order in which requests for the floor have been made;
• – conduct discussions;
• – ensure implementation of the provisions of the Charter and the Rules of Procedure of the Council;
• – settle questions raised on points of order;
• – introduce all agenda items as well as any proposal which may be submitted to the Council;
• – participate, in his capacity as a Council member, in the Council’s debates;
• – read out the Council’s decisions.

Article 14:

• a) Voting at the Council shall normally be by show of hands or by roll call if so requested by a member, or if the Chairman deems that the first method does not show clearly the majority. Voting may take place through secret ballot if necessary.
• b) Any member may abstain from voting or make partial or full reservation on any decision. The reservations shall be read out after the decision, and recorded in the session’s minutes.

Article 15:
Each Council member shall be entitled to one vote. Only the Council members shall have the right to vote.

Article 16:
Council decisions shall be made on the basis of the majority of the attending and voting members. In case of a tie, the Chairman shall have the casting vote.

Article 17:
The General Secretariat shall record all discussions on agenda items as well as all decisions resulting from those discussions.

Article 18:
The General Secretariat shall prepare a report of the deliberations and decisions of the Council, which shall be sent, within a period of three months from the end of the Council session, to the Council members and the Member Universities of the Federation.

Article 19:
A special record containing all the minutes of the Council meetings shall be kept at the General Secretariat. It shall be signed by the Chairman and by the Secretary General.
Full audio recordings of all sessions shall also be kept at the General Secretariat.

Article 20:
The Council sessions shall be closed after all agenda items have been considered.

Article 21:
In light of Article (11)- C of the Charter, the Council shall discharge the following tasks during its sessions:

• a) examine the Secretary General’s progress report on the programmes and activities, adopt it, and submit it to the General Conference for adoption;
• b) examine the Financial report of the Secretary General, adopt it and submit it to the General Conference for adoption;
• c) consider the draft action plans of the Federation, adopt them and submit them to the General Conference for adoption;
• d) consider the draft budgets prepared by the Secretary General, adopt them and submit them to the General Conference for adoption;
• e) prepare the draft agendas of the General Conference sessions upon a proposal by the Secretary General;
• f) prepare the internal administrative regulations of the Federation with the exception of those falling under the competence of the General Conference;
• g) approve subsidies and donations in accordance with the provisions of Article (14) of the Charter;
• h) take all the necessary measures to ensure that the Secretary General implement efficiently the programmes of the Federation, in accordance with the resolutions of the General Conference;
• i) entrust one or several members of the Council with particular tasks falling under the Federation’s objectives and fields of competence;
• j) set up one or several technical committees to ensure follow-up of the Organization’s operation and evaluate performance;
• k) take cognizance of the agreements signed by the Secretary General with the various parties;
• l) consider applications for membership in the Federation, take the decision thereon and submit its recommendations to the General Conference;
• m) recommend the suitable mechanisms to implement the resolutions and recommendations of the General Conference;
• n) approach Member Universities in the country of the Council member to urge them to pay their annual subscription fees and encourage Non-Member Universities to join the Federation;
• o) Lay down the Rules of Procedure of the Executive Council and its functions.

Article 22:
The Secretary General shall prepare a draft agenda for each Council session and shall send it out to the Council members at least one month before the meeting, along with all the necessary documents, except in the case of an extraordinary session, and shall send out invitation letters to attend the Council session two months prior to its meeting.

Article 23:
In addition to administrative, legal and financial matters as well as the programmes of the Federation, the draft agenda shall include:

• – all matters referred to the Council by the General Conference;
• – items which the Council had, in a previous session, decided to include in the agenda;
• – minutes of the previous session for adoption;
• – report of the Secretary General on the Federation’s activities and the measures taken to implement the decisions of the Executive Council and the resolutions of the General Conference;
• – issues, reports and statements which must be submitted to the Council in accordance with the administrative and financial regulations;
• – setting up committees or working groups to ensure a smooth conduct of its proceedings and to examine any matters which might arise.

Article 24:
Any member of the Council or the Secretary General may request that an item or several items be added to the agenda. The request shall be submitted:

• – one month before the date set for the Council meeting; or
• – at the opening of the Council session, if the question is deemed by the majority of Council members to be important and pressing.

Article 25:
Each member shall bear his own travel expenses to attend the Council meetings or to fulfill other tasks entrusted to him. He shall also bear his accommodation expenses unless they are borne by the hosting party.

Article 26:
These Rules of Procedure shall come into force upon their adoption by the Council.