By IAT Bureau / New Delhi
The sweltering summer of North India was hardly a deterrent for young and determined fellows from Africa, who were here to experience the cultural and religious diversity of India, last week. The visit was part of their training process, under the fellowship they enrolled in King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue (KAICIID), also known as International Dialogue Centre. KAICIID is an inter-governmental organization that promotes interreligious and intercultural dialogue to prevent and resolve conflict. They were part of KAICIID global community of diverse religious leaders, educators and dialogue practitioners from Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh and other religious backgrounds.
Aimed towards strengthening interreligious and intercultural dialogue through enhanced understanding, the fellows had an enriching experience during their week long sojourn. While in India, they also met the Indian Fellows Alumni, who gathered in for a two-day meeting focused on interreligious dialogue and the role of SDGs in advancing the G20 agenda. The gathering highlighted the work of KAICIID Fellows, with a specific emphasis on women’s perspectives on religious diversity and lessons learned. It was followed by informal interactions and a warm welcome dinner with Fellows from the Indian Alumni Chapter.
As part of their excursions, KAICIID Fellows had an enthralling experience visiting the iconic Taj Mahal, Lotus Temple and the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) Hindu Temple, deepening their understanding of different faiths and cultures.
KAICIID fellows also had a brief interaction with Rao Narender Yadav, Editor, India-Africa Today (IAT). Rao shared the thoughts behind establishing India-Africa Today and the need to enhance people-to-people connect between Africans and Indians. He also briefly shared the plan to establish an African Centre in India in the near future to make Indians more aware about diverse cuisine, arts and cinema of African countries.
KAICIID’s projects focus on facilitating intercultural and interreligious dialogue in different countries around the globe. It aids in connecting and cultivating a network of leaders committed to fostering peace in their communities through multi-cultural dialogue. Since its inception in 2015, the Programme has seen more than 400 participants from 86 different countries. This network of faith leaders help in deepening of the impact of their initiatives, allowing them to share best practices with one another and build bridges of understanding.
(Photo Source: Facebook/KAICIID)