COMSTECH nears completion of Muslim scientists directory
By Asghar Ali Mubarak

ISLAMABAD—The Committee on Science and Technological Cooperation (COMSTECH) is nearing completion of a directory about Muslim scientists working on research projects across the world.
The COMSTECH has so far completed sixteen volumes that include the names and details about scientists working in forty one Muslim states.
Four volumes of directory covering Afghanistan, Albania, Azerbaijan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Behrain, Benin, Brunei
Darussalam, Burkino Faso, Camroon, Chad, Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Gabon, Gambia, Iran, Iraq, Indonesia, Jordon, Kazakstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon and Libya were published and circulated.
The project of launching the directory was first approved bythe Seventh General Assembly Meeting in 1996 and it was originally called “Scientists in the Muslim World”.
Its scope was later widened and it was renamed as “Databaseof Active Scientists and Institutions in OIC member states” by the Executive Committee.
After its final approval by the Eighth General Assembly thevolumes are being published under the editorship of Prof. Dr.Attaur Rahman, coordinator general of COMSTECH and chairman of the Higher Education Commission and Dr. Ahsana Dar. In the beginning ISESCO joined this endeavour and thepublication was initially called COMSTECH-ISESCO Directory of active scientists in OIC Member states and their recent scientific publications. Despite lack of resources it is an important effort on the part of COMSTECH that remains active on account of its wide acceptability and active role that the publication is now playing in creating joint programs and collaborations among the OIC scientific community.
In the past few years COMSTECH has added the information onscientists working in Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Maurtania, Mozambique, Morocco, Nigeria, Niger, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
The contents of the directory include internationally abstracted information in the fields of agriculture, biology, chemistry, environmental sciences, medical technology and other important fields from several thousand leading scientific journals.
The information is arranged according to fields and sub- fields with facilities of intra and inter-country searches of specialists in various disciplines.