Prof. Sahiron Syamsuddin Affirms Ministry’s Support for UIII-Al Azhar Partnership
Depok, Indonesia – Prof. Dr. Phil. Sahiron Syamsuddin, MA, Director of Islamic Higher Education at the Indonesian Ministry of Religious Affairs, delivered a keynote speech during the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia (UIII) and Al-Azhar University, Egypt. The event, held at UIII, was also marked by the visit of Al-Azhar University Rector, Prof. Dr. Salamah Dawud.
Representing the Minister of Religious Affairs, Prof. Sahiron extended warm greetings and conveyed gratitude on behalf of the ministry. He praised the successful organization of the event and expressed high appreciation for the collaboration between UIII and Al-Azhar, emphasizing its significance in strengthening academic and cultural ties between Indonesia and Egypt.“The Ministry of Religious Affairs fully supports this partnership and remains committed to the establishment and development of UIII as a world-class academic institution,” he affirmed.
The MoU between UIII and Al-Azhar is expected to foster academic exchanges, joint research, and collaborative initiatives in community services, for the advancement of Islamic civilization.
As a practical implementation of this partnership, two distinguished Al-Azhar professors have been teaching at UIII since 2023, namely Dr. Abdul Rahman Muhammad Ahmed Hamed, Professor of Tafsir and Qur’anic Studies and Dr. Ahmed Hassan Waked, Professor of Hadith and Hadith Studies.
Prof. Dawud expressed that Al-Azhar is committed to supporting UIII beyond Islamic studies, including fields like science, technology, architecture, and medicine. He also pledged Al-Azhar’s assistance in establishing an Arabic Language Center at UIII and sending qualified faculty members to enhance the university’s academic programs.
