Today, Thursday, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, received Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby in a meeting held at the Vatican on the sideline of the "Faith and Science: Towards COP26" summit.  At-Tayyeb expressed his pleasure to meet Welby again, three years after holding the "Emerging Peacemakers" program conducted in collaboration between Al-Azhar and Canterbury Cathedral of London, Britain. According to the Grand Imam, this program produced a group of youth who are aware of the key challenges facing humanity, on top of which is the post-COVID challenge of qualifying emerging leaders who are able to move forward on the path of peacemaking.

For his part, Archbishop Welby expressed his happiness to meet the Grand Imam, noting that they agreed to the necessity of continuing the "Emerging Peacemakers" program. He added that he noticed a rising youth interest in spirituality and dissociation from secularism, referring to the necessity of promoting the religious leaders’ statement of caring for humanity and nature and empowering the youth to participate in decision-making and positively integrating them in a way that ensures honing their skills through experience and cross-generational transfer of knowledge.

At-Tayyeb and Welby expressed their concerns about some people’s unwillingness to receive Covid-19 vaccines, and that this would push the wheel backwards, stressing their confidence in the results of specialized scientists and appreciation of their precious efforts for humanity. Hence, they called for mainstreaming awareness of the importance of coronavirus vaccines, and the necessity of reaching practical solutions that guarantee a fair vaccine distribution policy, especially for the poorest and most needy African countries.  Both parties also referred to conflicts around the world and stressed that political conflicts between developed countries have led to the loss of human rights in developing countries as well as the reemergence of ethnic conflicts. They agreed on the necessity of empowering religious leaders, given their considerable influence, by reducing the gap between them and global decision-makers and addressing the deliberate slippage from dedicated peacebuilding efforts to such conflicts that have long irritated humanity. The Grand Imam and the Archbishop confirmed the importance of raising awareness of climate change dangers and the prevalence of major countries’ materialistic tendency in shaping the future of the planet and impacting the sustainability of environmental resources. They expressed their concern that the discussions on climate change would be confined to meetings, speeches, and rhetorical statements, leaving no genuine echo on the grounds. Hence, they called on decision-makers in the world to promote the provisions of international conventions on preserving the environment and ensuring a better future for coming generations.