Indeed, one strength of Islam has always lain in its belief that creation is not static but continuous, that through scientific and other endeavours, God has opened and continues to open new windows for us to see the marvels of His creation.

It is no exaggeration to say that the original Christian universities of Latin West, at Paris, Bologna and Oxford, indeed the whole European renaissance, received a vital influx of new knowledge from Islam -- an influx from which the later western colleges and universities, including those of North Africa, were to benefit in turn.

Above all, following the guidance of the Holy Quran, there was freedom of enquiry and research. The result was a magnificent flowering of artistic and intellectual activity throughout the ummah

One of the first and greatest research centres, the Bayt al-Hikmah established in Baghdad in 830, led Islam in translating philosophical and scientific works from Greek, Roman, Persian and Indian classics. By the art of translation, learning was assimilated from other civilizations.

God has said: Wisdom is an immense good, wherever you find this invaluable treasure, acquire it

There are those, who enter the world in such poverty that they are deprived of both the means and the motivation to improve their lot. Unless these unfortunates can be touched with the spark which ignites the spirit of individual enterprise and determination, they will only sink back into renewed apathy, degradation and despair. It is for us, who are more fortunate, to provide that spark.

Many forces exert pressure to divide nations; recession, the polarisation between the developed and the developing countries, divisions in religious faiths. In my view it is, therefore, all-important that countries in the same continent, troubled by similar economic and other problems, should find common areas of endeavour and strive to assist each other

The preservation of democratic institutions requires a strong sense of integrity and discipline. Striking a balance between freedom and unbridled licence demands constant pragmatic adjustments in all areas of life

The dangers facing democracy worldwide are increasing under the stress of economic pressure and unemployment. Recent years have demonstrated, not only in the developing countries but also in the older western democracies, how fragile democracy can be when political morality collapses under the strain of events.

The limited sources of the Third World can only be made the most of by good management and the encouragement of merit, at all levels and in all walks of life.