Delegations from the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the Republic of Türkiye took part. The Turkish Cypriot State attended as an ECO Observer. The ECO Secretariat, the ECO Cultural Institute and the ECO Science Foundation were also represented. The meeting was preceded on 4 November by the High Level Expert Group Meeting, chaired by Mrs. Zeynep Öçgüder, Deputy Director General for European Union and Foreign Relations of the Ministry of National Education of Türkiye.
In his opening statement, ECOEI President Prof. M. Akif Kireçci outlined the Institute’s main achievements since the 4th BoT Meeting in 2023. These include the allocation of dedicated premises to the Institute by the Government of Türkiye, the adoption of the Plan of Action on the Internationalization of Higher Education in the ECO Region in Islamabad, the ECOEI Series on Common Cultural Heritage and the Digital History School Project, the International Workshop Series on Artificial Intelligence in Education as well as new publications on teacher education.
He also expressed the Institute’s readiness to extend these initiatives to all Member States. ECO Secretary General H.E. Ambassador Dr. Asad M. Khan and Minister Tekin also addressed the meeting. They were followed by statements from the Heads of Delegation of the Member States, the Turkish Cypriot State and the ECO Science Foundation.
The Board adopted the President’s Extended Biennial Report 2023–2026 and approved the ECOEI Work Programme 2027–2029, which brings together 89 activities under six themes. The Board also proposed Prof. M. Akif Kireçci for a new three-year term as President of the ECOEI, to be appointed by the ECO Council of Ministers.
The meeting set the Institute’s direction, resources and priorities for the next three years and reaffirmed the Member States’ shared commitment to cooperation in education across the ECO region.
