The Conference has been co-organized by the Danish Centre for Culture and Dialogue, Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, UNESCO, the OIC General Secretariat, ISESCO, ALECSO, UN Alliance of Civilizations Secretariat, Anna Lindth Foundation and Council of Europe. This follow up Conference was hosted by Denmark in continuation of the Rabat Conference of April 2005 and aimed at building upon the Rabat Commitments through special focus on the role of education, which is one of the core pillars of the Alliance of Civilizations project. In his statement to the Conference, the OIC Secretary General highlighted the initiative of the Danish government to host the Follow-up Conference in Copenhagen as being a constructive step in light of the ramifications of the caricature crisis. He expressed his belief that hosting the Conference by Denmark would serve as an effort at confidence building on the part of the Danish government and people towards dispelling the tension and mutual misunderstanding which snowballed into an amalgam of divisions and disagreements at the international level. He voiced his hope that the Copenhagen Conference would help usher in a new phase for collective efforts to promote inter-cultural and inter-religious understanding and constructive dialogue. --MORE www.spa.gov.sa/600489