Kenya -- Nairobi, 28 July 2011 - As Mawlana Hazar Imam prepared to depart Nairobi, senior Jamati leaders bid him farewell. Prior to leaving East Africa, Mawlana Hazar Imam stopped over in Arusha, where he visited the site of the Aga Khan University campus and met with the Secretary General of the East African Community. Nairobi, 28 July 2011 - As ...
Kenya -- Nairobi, 27 July - The Foundation Ceremony of the Aga Khan University's Graduate School of Media and Communications was held today. Mawlana Hazar Imam and the Right Honourable Raila Odinga, Prime Minister of Kenya, presided over the ceremony. "The years immediately ahead will be a time of breath-taking change for Africa, and for the field of media," said Mawlana ...
Kenya -- Mawlana Hazar Imam joined Jamati and institutional leaders at a dinner held in Nairobi on 15 July 2011. Hazar Imam was presented with a Qajar manuscript of Nasir Khusraw's Diwan on behalf of those in attendance. Guests were entertained by performances of students from the Aga Khan Academy, Nairobi, and well-known Ismaili Bollywood music artists Salim and Sulaiman Merchant. ...
Kenya -- Nairobi, 25 July 2011 - Thousands of Ismailis gathered at the Parklands Complex in Nairobi to witness the opening of a new Heart and Cancer Centre. The Aga Khan University Hospital facility was inaugurated by His Excellency President Mwai Kibaki of Kenya in the presence of Mawlana Hazar Imam. The Heart and Cancer Centre brings international standards of patient ...
Nairobi, 22 July 2011 - Mawlana Hazar Imam met with His Excellency President Mwai Kibaki at Harambee House in Nairobi today. Continuing his Jamati visit to Kenya, Hazar Imam had returned to the capital after spending a few days in Mombasa where he met with the Jamat and visited the Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa. Mawlana Hazar Imam takes in a performance ...
Global -- Mawlana Hazar Imam attended a dinner with the Jamati and institutional leaders of Uganda held at the Kampala Serena Hotel. During the evening, President Huzur Mukhi Mohamed Lalani presented Hazar Imam a gift of an incense burner cover from Khorasan shaped in the form of a horse head, on behalf of those gathered. ...
Kenya -- Nairobi, 16 July 2011 - Mawlana Hazar Imam joined Jamati and institutional leaders at a dinner held in Nairobi yesterday evening. Hazar Imam was presented with a Qajar manuscript of Nasir Khusraw's Diwan on behalf of those in attendance. Mawlana Hazar Imam addresses those gathered for the Kenya Jamati Institutional Dinner. Courtesy of the Ismaili Council for Kenya "I ...
Global -- Mawlana Hazar Imam joined the leadership of the Tanzanian Jamat for a dinner on 7 July 2011 in Dar es Salaam. Marking the special occasion, Ismaili youth performed dances representing cultures from different parts of the world and President Aitmadi Jehangir Bhaloo presented a gift to the Imam on behalf of those in attendance. ...
Uganda -- Kampala, 13 July 2011 - This morning Mawlana Hazar Imam met with the Uganda Jamat at Kampala Jamatkhana, before travelling to inspect the construction of the Bujagali Hydroelectric power dam. Yesterday, Hazar Imam attended a dinner with the Jamati and institutional leaders of Uganda. Mawlana Hazar Imam's two-day visit to Uganda drew to a close today, after he met ...
Global -- Dar es Salaam, 7 July 2011 - On the eve of his departure from Tanzania, Mawlana Hazar Imam attended a dinner with the leadership of the Tanzanian Jamat. Hazar Imam is expected to meet with the entire Tanzanian Jamat before concluding the first leg of his East African tour. Mawlana Hazar Imam addresses those gathered at the Tanzania institutional ...
Global -- AKPBS's innovative Building and Construction Improvement Programme has received the Award for Avoided Deforestation at this year's Ashden Awards for Sustainable Energy. Princess Zahra, Head of the Social Welfare department of the Aga Khan Development Network, accepted the award on behalf of AKPBS at a ceremony in London. London, 16 June 2011 - The world's most prestigious green energy ...
Global -- Nasim Devji is the Group CEO and Managing Director of Diamond Trust Bank, Kenya - an affiliate of the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development - and the first woman in the Kenyan banking industry to hold that office. She has garnered numerous career recognitions, including being named Leading African Woman in Business in 2010. Yasmin Madhani recently spoke ...
Tajikistan -- Thousands of kilometres from Khorog, on the other side of the vast Indian Ocean, is the Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa. Eight Tajik students were recently given the opportunity to attend the residential school, and are are now benefiting from a multicultural student body, experienced educators and state-of-the-art facilities. Wearing their new school uniforms, the Tajik students pose for a ...
Global -- Dr Aziz Esmail, a Governor of The Institute of Ismaili Studies, delivered the 2011 Milad-un-Nabi lecture at the Ismaili Centre, London. Reflecting on the commemoration of Prophet Muhammad's birthday (peace be upon him and his family), he elucidates on the nature and evolution of cultural memory and its relationship with modernity. ...
Each year, thousands of North Americans adopt orphaned or abandoned children, and make a lifelong commitment to love and care for them. Two Ismaili families share their personal stories of adoption, and journeys they undertook to bring their children home. Eyes furrowed in concentration, two-year-old Amani Bhakta splashes color onto a blank canvas. "I'm painting!" she exclaims into the home video ...
Pakistan -- For nearly 16 years, Shamim Hassan Shivji placed close to 100 Karachi orphans with couples from around the world. She and a neighbour routinely cared for the orphaned or abandoned infants while seeking out loving homes for them. She never charged for the service - her reward was seeing kids she placed grow up to become well-educated members of ...
Global -- Mawlana Hazar Imam delivers his acceptance remarks at a banquet in San Francisco on 26 April 2011, after being presented with the University of California San Francisco Medal, the University's highest honour. ...
United Kingdom -- Thirty Ismaili volunteers extended a hand of friendship and support - and many bottles of water - to some 8 000 runners at the 2011 Brighton Marathon. The event was an opportunity to get involved and give back to the wider community. Thirsty runners welcomed the bottles of water handed to them by Ismaili volunteers as they rounded ...
Kenya -- When Salim Mohamed started his Time and Knowledge Nazrana assignment with AKDN project and construction management company PCM, the civil engineer brought decades of experience to the East African construction projects he was tasked with overseeing. He in turn gained valuable experience working in an African setting, and an understanding of what it's like to work for an AKDN ...
Global -- At a banquet in San Francisco on 26 April, Mawlana Hazar Imam was presented with the 2011 University of California San Francisco Medal. The prestigious recognition builds on existing collaborations between the UCSF and AKDN, and particularly the University's support for training and research programmes at the Aga Khan University. ...
Kenya -- As owners of a Kenyan beach resort, the Visram family maintains a firm belief in improving the lives of the local community. Their efforts to help people understand the real and present dangers of illegal human trafficking earned them a nomination for the first-ever Business Leader's Award to Fight Human Trafficking, for which Mawlana Hazar Imam was a jury ...
Global -- In February 2011, a group of seven 10-foot high installations called Tolerance was unveiled at Harmony Walk in Houston near the site of the planned Ismaili Center, Houston. The statues were created by Spanish artist, Jaume Plensa and funded by City of Houston together with Mawlana Hazar Imam and a few private donors. ...
Global -- In celebration of Navroz, the Aga Khan Development Network hosted a reception at the Ismaili Centre, Dushanbe. Over 300 people attended the celebration, which was held on 20 March 2011 and was the first Navroz event ever held at the Centre. Tajik Government and Parliament officials, Ambassadors, heads of international organisations in Dushanbe, and Jamati members were in attendance. ...
Dr Hussein Rashid delivered a lecture titled Everyday Art: An Islamic Impact on American Art on 13 February 2011 at the Michael C. Carlos Museum of Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. ...
Global -- From 28 August to 5 December 2010, the Michael C. Carlos Museum at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia became a hub of Islamic calligraphic exploration. The Museum presented two complementary exhibitions that explored calligraphy in an interactive context. The two exhibitions titled Traces of the Calligrapher: Islamic Calligraphy in Practice, c. 1600-1900 and Writing the Word of God: Calligraphy ...
Tanzania -- When the Government of Tanzania requested support for the victims of an explosion on the outskirts of Dar es Salaam, the Ismailis in the area were eager to help. The Ismaili Council for Tanzania partnered with the Aga Khan Hospital to organise a blood drive, and members of the Jamat donated emergency supplies to victims of the disaster. Every ...
Pakistan -- Over the last 25 years, AKDN has planted over 100 million trees in Asia and Africa. Many communities already recognise that sustainable agro-forestry provides dividends in the form of food, fuel and fodder, and the emergence of a global carbon market presents new opportunity. The Aga Khan Development Network's concern for climate change is an integral part of its ...
United States -- There is near universal scientific consensus that the loading of the atmosphere with greenhouse gases is causing increased global warming and associated climate change, argues Abyd Karmali. Fortunately, he notes, several countries are putting in place policies to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, which are resulting substantial new economic opportunities. Climate change, the carbon market and treesOver 25 ...
Pakistan -- Massive flooding last year in the regions surrounding the Indus River caused devastation, destroying more than 1.4 million acres of cropland and over one million homes. But the resilience of those affected and the compassion and generosity of those providing assistance offers hope and lessons for the times ahead. They call it the Lion River because on a dark ...
India -- Young Ismailis are increasingly making their mark in all fields - academic and non-academic. Through the Youth Awards for Excellence, 2010, the Aga Khan Youth and Sports Board for India recognised the Jamati youth and honoured high achievers in fields such as sports, the arts, sciences, creative expression, and leadership. Youth from Mumbai perform a traditional dance during the ...
Afghanistan -- The Ismaili youth of Afghanistan have a new place where they can play, learn and socialise. The two-storey Youth, Sports and Social Development Center in Kabul, opened its doors in December 2010. The product of a partnership between the Ismaili Council for Afghanistan and Roshan Community (the social responsibility arm of the nation's leading telecommunications provider), the centre is ...
United Kingdom -- The Ismaili Community Ensemble in the United Kingdom recently collaborated with musicians from the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Pandemonium and Morley Chamber Choir to present a cornucopia of beautiful music evoking the heritage of the Jewish, Christian and Muslim traditions. Learning how to play the Pakistani Rubab. Naveed Osman On 29 January at Cadogan Hall, Councillor Richard Barnes, the ...
Canada -- With the walls of the new Ismaili Centre and Aga Khan Museum beginning to emerge along Wynford Drive, Toronto architectural firm Moriyama & Teshima discussed the projects at a recent event held at the Ontario Science Centre. Their presentation, which took place against the backdrop of an exhibition of images and architectural renderings, was attended by prominent guests including ...
Portugal -- What defines being old? Is it reaching a particular age? Retiring from the workplace? And what meaningful roles can the elderly play in society today? These and other matters were put forward at a recent gathering of seniors in Lisbon. These and other matters were put forward at a recent gathering of seniors in Lisbon. Held at the Ismaili ...
United States -- Dr. Francesca Leoni delivered a presentation to mark the millennial anniversary of Firdawsi's Shahnama. The presentation took place at the University of Texas at Arlington, with support from its Office of the Provost, the University's College of Liberal Arts, and the Ismaili Council for Northern Texas. ...
Canada -- An exhibition that showcases the images and architectural renderings of the Ismaili Centre, Toronto, the Aga Khan Museum and some of its Collection, and their Park, will be displayed across Canada over the next six months starting in Toronto. The exhibition will also include images of the global Ismaili Centres and various projects of the Aga Khan Trust for ...
Global -- Maputo, Mozambique, 16 December 2010 - In the presence of Mawlana Hazar Imam, Mozambique's president, His Excellency Armando Guebuza, officially inaugurated the refurbished Polana Serena Hotel, a historic water-front landmark in the capital city of Maputo, and one of Africa's grandest colonial era hotels.Situated in the heart of Maputo on four hectares of lush grounds, the 142-room Polana has ...
Maputo, Mozambique, 15 December 2010 - Mawlana Hazar Imam arrived in Maputo this evening on a two-day visit to Mozambique. During the visit, Hazar Imam will participate in the inauguration of the Polana Serena Hotel in Maputo. Upon his arrival, Mawlana Hazar Imam was received by senior government officials, including Mr Fernando Sumbana, Minister of Tourism, Mr Pedro Couto, Vice Minister ...
Following the Aga Khan Award for Architecture ceremony held in Doha at the end of November, CNN's John Defterios spoke with Mawlana Hazar Imam about the pace of social change in the developing world. "I think the issue is not only quality of life," said Mawlana Hazar Imam to CNN. "There are many other criteria and one of the ones we ...
Luxor, Egypt, 10 December 2010 -Mawlana Hazar Imam arrived in Egypt today to attend the Luxor International Forum to Combat Human Trafficking. Upon his arrival, Hazar Imam met with Her Excellency Suzanne Mubarak, the First Lady of Egypt. Luxor, Egypt, 10 December 2010 -Mawlana Hazar Imam arrived in Egypt today to attend the Luxor International Forum to Combat Human Trafficking. Upon ...
