Egypt’s Al-Azhar receives 48 Burundian students: Grand Imam

CAIRO – 16 August 2021: The Grand Imam, Dr. Ahmed al-Tayyib, Sheikh of Al-Azhar Al-Sharif, said that Al-Azhar receives 48 students from Burundi, and we have great flexibility in allocating scholarships according to the needs of countries.

This came during a meeting with Ambassador Sheikh Rashid Malachi Nyirajera, the new Burundian ambassador in Cairo at Al-Azhar’s Sheikhdom on Monday.

At the beginning of the meeting, His Eminence the Grand Imam welcomed the Burundian ambassador, stressing that Al-Azhar is proud of its mission to spread the tolerant teachings of Islam and to support countries and peoples with moderate Azhar thought and method.

“We support the dissemination of moderate discourse, citizenship and correcting misconceptions through Al-Azhar's programs designed for training imams and preachers from different countries of the world,” al-Tayyib added.

For his part, the Burundian ambassador stressed that this first meeting for him with the Sheikh of Al-Azhar is a historic moment for him, given the personality and good international reputation of the Grand Imam, which made Al-Azhar the focus of the world’s attention.

He also expressed Burundi’s endeavor to establish a center for Al-Azhar to teach and disseminate the Arabic language and rehabilitate students to join Al-Azhar University, as well as benefit from the imam training program, and receive a larger number of Al-Azhar envoys, all of which will greatly help the state in achieving security and intellectual stability through Al-Azhar’s curricula and its tolerant moderate ideology that represents true Islam.