Abang Johari receives a souvenir from Hamsiah after officiating at the conference while Rubiah (right), Noraini (left) and others look on. — Photo by Jeffery Mostapa
KOTA SAMARAHAN: A new approach to Islamic education is vital in the globalised world, says Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Openg.
“We must review our approach. Our language skills must be strong so that we can understand all the theories that will enable Muslims to develop in a global setting,” he said in his opening speech at the International Conference on Islamic Education (ICIEd) 2016 at Tun Abdul Razak Teachers’ Training Institute (IPTAR) here yesterday.
He said the languages to be mastered included Arabic for better understanding of the Quran and English for other knowledge or information.
Abang Johari also lamented the lack of Islamic scholars from Sarawak even though the state had all the resources.
“For example, Sarawak is rich in biodiversity. We have plants with a lot of nutritional values that can be turned into medicine. Where are all the scholars and scientists to do that?
“Even though we have many resources, we are still behind in this globalised world because our knowledge is not up to date,” he said.
He also suggested looking to the achievements of past Islamic scholars in the quest to uplift Islamic education and the status of the community in general.
The three-day conference is organised by Persatuan Intelektual Muslim Islam Malaysia and the college – IPTAR. It is a platform to develop and strengthen pedagogy and practices in Islamic education.
Samarahan MP Rubiah Wang, Sarawak Islamic Council president Datu Misnu Taha, IPTAR director Hamsiah Abdullah Masni and ICIEd 2016 chairperson Dr Noraini Omar were among those present.