King Abdullah opens the SESAME complex in Jordan

On 6 January 2003, His Majesty King Abdullah laid the cornerstone for the International Centre for Synchrotron Light for Experimental Science Applications in the Middle East (SESAME) at Princess Rahma University College.

Egypt, the Palestinian National Authority, Bahrain, Turkey, Iran, Israel, Jordan and Pakistan have joined the project as the founding members. The Director General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsura, formally announced the establishment of the SESAME project as a UNESCO Science and Technology project, the third of its kind, the first being CERN established some 50 years ago.

Founding members of SESAME, together with several observer countries, form the SESAME Council, which, among other responsibilities, will provide the annual operating budget. Other countries are also expected to join soon.

This Council replaces the International Interim Council that has met nine times since its formation in 1999. Herwig Schopper, former Director General of CERN, was elected to continue as President of the Council with Khaled Toukan, Minister of Education of Jordan, and Dincer Ulku, Hacettepe University, continuing as Vice-Presidents.