FIMA Year Book 2009 - Federation of Islamic Medical Associations

Muslim Contributionsstate of affairs may be reflective of thestate of such institutions in the Muslimworld. Indeed the latest Times HigherEducation Survey showed that none ofthe universities in the Muslim worldranked in the top 100, the highest beingthe University of Malaya in Malaysiaat a lowly 180 (39) . In fact the Universityof Malaya is the only university from aMuslim country which is listed in thetop 200. This in turn is a reflection ofpriorities given to research funding inmost Muslim countries.Not only are Muslims despondent at therelative lack of Muslim contributions toresearch and knowledge generation,even the non Muslims are asking thequestion (40) . Some have even proposedways for the Muslims to reformthemselves (41) . Others are perplexed asto why despite such a strong heritagein science, why are Muslims laggingbehind (42) . As a nation we have toanswer the questions being asked of ourconviction and rise up to the challengeof reliving our glorious distinguishedpast. We should not just lay on ourlaurels and sing the same old mantraabout how great we were in the past.We have to face the stark reality thatwe are way behind in contemporarysetting. We should also stop blamingeverything on Western conspiracytheories. Adopting an attitude of‘Western phobia’ and ‘Western bashing’does not help either. We must strategiseto bring back the glorious past.Strategies to increase Muslims’contributions to medical researchWhat is required in the Muslim worldis no less than a major transformationin order for us to return to our gloriouspast. It is important to begin with theend in mind and think long term. Anexercise in “Reverse Engineering” istherefore pertinent. Clear end points oroutcomes must be identified and thisoutcome extrapolated in the reversedirection to present day situation.This will provide an opportunity torecognize immediate requirementsin the present system to reach theidentified end point. Major barriers andhurdles must also be anticipated andstrategies to circumvent them thoughtof. Any major transformation must bedone in an integrated and collectiveapproach. Muslim nations shouldwork together towards this noble goal.This obviously is a tall order based onour track record in tackling commonissues in the recent past. However theMuslim scientist community shouldnot be disheartened and take this as acollective challenge.Listed in Table 1 are the desiredend points which we should strivetowards. Once this is agreed upon, astepwise approach must be adoptedand the end point projected intopresent day situation. This will allowfor adequate opportunity to visualizeand reflect upon present and futureprospects and alignment of availableresources with projected end points (43) .The overall aim of targeting theseend points is to create respectableMuslim Medical Institutions whichare capable of generating respectableFIMA YearBook 2009116