During the last seven years, from 2017 to 2024, Mawlana Hazar Imam’s Imamat has been shaped by his Diamond Jubilee celebrations, the Covid-19 pandemic, and a commitment to helping vulnerable communities live better lives despite the global threat of climate change.

The Diamond Jubilee began on 11 July 2017, when Jamati leaders from around the world paid homage to Mawlana Hazar Imam at his residence in Aiglemont, marking the 60th year of his Imamat. Across the globe, members of the Jamat gathered to watch the ceremony and to celebrate this historic event.

Over the next 12 months, Mawlana Hazar Imam visited the Jamats in Uganda, Tanzania, Pakistan, the UAE, India, USA, Kenya, Canada, France, the UK, and Portugal. During each visit, the Imam was honoured by members of government and civil society. This included receiving Uganda’s highest honour, the Most Excellent Order of the Pearl of Africa, the UN Foundation’s Champion of Change Award, and the Asia Society’s Game Changer Lifetime Achievement Award.

As with previous Jubilees, Mawlana Hazar Imam continued to establish new institutions throughout the Diamond Jubilee year. These included attending the first Global Pluralism Award ceremony in Ottawa and inaugurating the AKU Centre for Innovation in Medical Education in Karachi, the Sunder Nursery in Delhi, and the Aga Khan Centre in London. 

In addition, commencing global leadership for the newly formed Aga Khan Agency for Habitat (AKAH) meant redoubling efforts to enable communities living in dangerous places – notably in the high disaster-prone mountains of Central Asia – to respond effectively to the daunting effects of climate change.

Hazar Imam observed that the risks were getting worse for rural and mountainous communities, and directed his institutions to be more ambitious in terms of risk management and preparedness, so that people in these communities survive and thrive, despite the risks.

Today, AKAH is helping communities in both dense urban centres and remote mountain villages to combat climate change by rethinking the ways buildings are designed, constructed and operated – putting green building principles at the heart of development. More broadly, these principles are leading AKDN’s efforts to green the built environment across all its institutions and programmes and reach net zero carbon by 2030.

The Jubilee year culminated with the Diamond Jubilee Celebration in Lisbon, in which some 40,000 Ismailis from over 45 countries came together for a joyous weeklong celebration. During this visit, Mawlana Hazar Imam was given State honours during a visit to the Presidential Palace and delivered an address to the Portuguese Parliament. At a concluding ceremony held on 11 July 2018, Mawlana Hazar Imam officially designated the Seat of the Ismaili Imamat, followed by a Darbar with members of the global Jamat.

At the designation ceremony, Mawlana Hazar Imam explained the reasons for establishing the Seat in Portugal:

“Over the years, the Portuguese have shown friendship, understanding, and a warm welcome to the Jamat as well as to the Imamat. Ours is a relationship grounded in the shared values of religious freedom, tolerance, and pluralism. I believe, alongside strengthening the Imamat’s capacities, this will also enable our institutions to make a constructive and beneficial contribution to areas of mutual interest.”

Following the Diamond Jubilee year, Mawlana Hazar Imam’s institutional activities continued. AKDN’s cultural activities were further strengthened with the Imam attending the inauguration of the Aga Khan Garden in Edmonton and the first prize-giving ceremony of the Aga Khan Music Awards in Lisbon.

Over the course of the last 67 years, Mawlana Hazar Imam has received more than 70 international honours, awards, and honorary degrees from various governments, universities, and civil society organisations.

This includes honorary degrees from the University of Calgary, the University of British Columbia, and Simon Fraser University received in 2018. Mawlana Hazar Imam also  received the keys to the city of Porto in Portugal in 2019 and the city of Toronto in 2022. Two roads were also named in his honour: a section of Wynford Drive in Toronto was ceremonially named Aga Khan Boulevard in 2022, and the French town of Chantilly named a road Route Son Altesse l'Aga Khan (His Highness the Aga Khan Road) in 2023. 

In March 2020, in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic and the closure of Jamatkhanas around the world, Mawlana Hazar Imam led the Jamati and AKDN institutions in their pandemic response. He also gave guidance to the Jamat by sending numerous messages and Talikas that were distributed online. The Imam emphasised the importance of following public health measures to keep individuals, families, and communities safe, including urging the Jamat to get vaccinated. He also emphasised the importance of abiding by the historic values of our Jamat, such as voluntary service, caring for others, particularly those who are in greatest need, and the importance of private, personal prayer. 

In 2021, Mawlana Hazar Imam spoke virtually at AKU’s Global Virtual Convocation, AKU’s Kenya Charter Granting Ceremony, and the first Convocation of the University of Central Asia. 

On 13 December 2021, Mawlana Hazar Imam celebrated his milestone 85th birthday with members of his family. In a Talika Mubarak sent on that occasion, our beloved Imam said:

“It is my conviction that the traditional values of our Tariqah – of commitment to the faith, unity, self-reliance, care and generosity for others – will serve the Jamat well as we plan for the future…

I send my most affectionate loving blessings for your good health and happiness, spiritual progress, worldly success, strength of faith, and unity, with best loving blessings for mushkil-asan. You are all most particularly in my heart, in my thoughts, and in my prayers.”

On 11 July 2022, Mawlana Hazar Imam celebrated his milestone 65th Imamat Day with a ceremony at his residence in Lisbon, attended by members of his family and senior Jamati leaders. For this occasion, a 17th-century ‘alam, or processional standard, from Safavid Persia was presented to the Imam as a gift.

At Mawlana Hazar Imam’s request, members of his family have accepted a more prominent role at public events over the past two years. However, Hazar Imam has continued to lead the Imamat institutions and to guide the Jamat through his Talikas sent on various occasions. 

In October 2022, Mawlana Hazar Imam approved new guidelines for the global Ismaili Volunteers, including a new name, motto, logo, and uniforms. Under Mawlana Hazar Imam’s leadership, Global Encounters was expanded in 2023 to bring together Global Encounters Camps, Jubilee Games, Jubilee Arts, Heritage Journeys, and more under one institution. 

As Chancellor of the Aga Khan University (AKU) and the University of Central Asia, Mawlana Hazar Imam sent messages for their respective convocations in 2023. In his message to AKU’s convocation on 18 March 2023, he left the graduands with this aspiration for the future that we could all live by:

“...my wish today is that you will know the joy of planting hope in people's lives, of building bridges of understanding, of venturing into the uncharted waters where new knowledge is discovered. May your futures be rich in challenges embraced and overcome. May you be bold amid uncertainty, and see your boldness rewarded.”

In this series, we have reflected on the immense scope and impact of the work of the Imamat since 1957. This work has demonstrated Mawlana Hazar Imam’s tireless efforts, not only for the benefit of the Jamat, but for wider humanity. He has guided the Jamat through periods of struggle and turmoil, and has prepared the Jamat to look to the future with a sense of confidence, fortitude, and hope.