On 22 January 2007, the Hon Julie Bishop MP, the then Minister for Education, Science and Training, announced that a consortium of Australian universities led by the University of Melbourne had been selected to host the National Centre of Excellence for Islamic Studies.  The consortium is comprised of the University of Melbourne, the University of Western Sydney and Griffith University.

The host consortium was selected through a competitive process open to all Australian universities.  The University of Melbourne led consortium proposal was chosen ahead of a number of other bids.  The consortium is well placed to build on the funding that the Australian Government has committed and establish a world-class centre.

On 16 July 2006, the Hon Julie Bishop MP, as Minister for Education, Science and Training, and the Hon Andrew Robb MP, then Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs, jointly announced the Australian Government’s decision to provide $8 million over four years towards the establishment of the Centre at an Australian university or consortium of universities.

The Centre is an Australian Government supported initiative under the National Action Plan to Build on Social Cohesion, Harmony and Security.  The plan, commissioned by the Council of Australian Governments, supports higher education and other initiatives and was informed by the work of the Muslim Community Reference Group which met from September 2005 to September 2006.

The Australian Government’s decision to establish a Centre was made after consultation with Islamic religious leaders, Muslim community leaders, members of the higher education sector and members of the wider Australian community.  The vision for the Centre to become, over time, a world class Islamic learning and research facility has been informed by these consultations.

Religious leaders from the Australian Muslim community met at the Conference of Australian Imams in September 2006.  Acknowledging that it was up to Muslims themselves to select their Imams and other religious leaders, the religious leaders at the conference voiced their support for the Centre.  They noted that the Centre will be a place of learning and academic endeavour, enabling both Muslim and non-Muslims to deepen their understanding of Muslim cultures and societies. 

Muslim Community Reference Group members recommended in October 2005 that a stock-take of Islamic study at Australian universities be undertaken.  This stock-take found that many universities are willing to further develop their expertise in providing Islamic education and training options on their campuses.  The stock-take also found a lack of courses or programs that could help meet the learning needs of Imams and other Islamic religious leaders and teachers.

• A copy of the stock-take report is available ( PDF 124KB)

The 2004 report Religion, Cultural Diversity and Safeguarding Australia by the Australian Multicultural Foundation and the then Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs recognised the capacity of religious community leaders to promote social capital and peace-building in their community and that professional development programmes for Imams and other Islamic leaders would assist them in their leadership roles in a multi-faith Australian society.

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