in their meeting only weeks before this Summit Conference. Thus are we only too aware of the political, developmental, social, cultural and educational challenges they brought to the fore; only too aware are we of the internal and external threats that have helped to exacerbate the Ummah's current plight, as they not only menace its very future but also that of the whole of humanity and civilization. These challenges must, therefore, be dealt with through a strategic vision, which needs to plan for the future of the Ummah just as it needs to maintain a responsive pulse to international developments so as to gradually refine itself into a forward-looking vision that enables the Muslim world to tackle the challenges of the Twenty-first Century by leveraging the collective will and Joint Islamic Action. --More ssss 1844 Local Time 1544 GMT
