About CBBMAG

The Canterbury Bridge Building Muslim Advisory Group (CBBMAG) was formally established with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on the 13th of June 2010 between the Office of Ethnic Affairs (OEA) and interested Canterbury Muslim community members. The signing followed a series of discussions and meetings that began in 2008. One of the drivers behind the MOU was OEA’s national initiative to consult more effectively and provide opportunities for inclusion. Another driver resulted from the New Zealand Government being a member of the Group of Friends to the Alliance of Civilizations (AoC). OEA is a focal point for this initiative. The overall goal of the AoC is to improve understanding and cooperative relations among nations and people across cultures and religions and, in the process, to help counter the forces that fuel polarization and extremism.

The goals of CBBMAG are to strengthen and unify the Canterbury Muslim community by building bridges both among Muslims and between Muslims and non-Muslim organizations established to support the whole community including Muslims. CBBMAG is doing this through:

• Focus groups to identify and understand issues and opportunities,
• Regular meetings with the Canterbury Muslim community,
• Regular meetings with OEA and community support organisations,
• Working with OEA to organise presentations from non-Muslim support organisations,
• Improving communication across the Muslim community through various media including this website, and
• Supporting the Muslim community to establish initiatives to strengthen and unify the Canterbury Muslim community.