The Twenty-fifth Session of the Islamic Conference of Foreign Minister (Session for a better future for the peoples of the Islamic Ummah) held in Doha, State of Qatar, from 17 to 19 Dhul Quida 1418H (15-17 March 1998),

Recalling resolutions 30/23-E, 33/24-E and 36/8-E(IS) adopted respectively by the 23rd and 24th Sessions of the Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers and Eighth Session of the Islamic Summit Conference;

Expressing its deep concern over the worldwide spread of infectious diseases affecting human beings, animals and natural life in recent years;

Further expressing its concern over the spread of AIDS as a result of non-adherence to religious values and the slow progress of medical research to prevent and cure it;

Considering the gravity of the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (ESB) epidemic and its effect on animal and human health as well as on the world economy and international trade;

Expressing its appreciation for the preventive and curative health measures taken by Member States during the pilgrimage season in particular;

Further expressing its deep appreciation for the excellent and efficient health services provided by the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to pilgrims;

Having considered the Report of the Secretary General on this subject,

1. Calls for closer coordination between Member States and other countries on the one hand and the World Health Organization on the other hand in order to fight against this danger through the use of new vaccines and immunization schemes against contagious diseases.

2. Calls for greater coordination and cooperation among Member States in the area of health through the enforcement of international health regulations, such as vaccination of pilgrims going to the Holy Land, improvement of health conditions in addition to cooperation on health sensitization before pilgrims' departure through the media in their countries.

3. Invites Member States to collectively organize the fight against the expansion of the AIDS pandemic and to seriously uphold medical research efforts in this field at national, regional and international levels;

4. Also invites Member States to devote special attention to highlighting the religious moral values in their educational establishments, their media and their Da'wa fora, as those values are the most effective means to prevent the spread of that pandemic.

5. Urges Member States, their relevant national and regional institutions, and international cooperation institutions, in particular the world health Organization (WHO), to set up immediately a mechanism of early warning and control as well as rapid exchange of information on the marketing and import of meat and by-products infected with ESB (or "mad cow" disease);

6. Invites Member States to take strict measures against reprehensible practices on the part of certain food importers and industrialists and to grant urgency and priority to supporting scientific and medical research related to developing agricultural and animal produce so as to achieve food self sufficiency;

7. Supports the call for holding a meeting, in the near future, of Member State's Ministers of Health on the subject of epidemic diseases that affect humans through human beings, animals, plants and the environment and welcomes the kind offer of the Islamic Republic of Iran to host this meeting in Tehran.

8. Requests the Secretary General to take appropriate steps for the implementation of this resolution in coordination with the Standing Committee for Scientific and Technological Cooperation and to report thereon to the Twenty-sixth Session of the Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers.

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