IslamicFinance.de

Bank Muscat together with the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) were hosts of a workshop on January 15th. The topic of the workshop was Environmental and Social Risk Analysis (ESRA). The event was held under the auspices of Sheikh Mohammed bin Said Al Kalbani, minister of Social Development. The goal of the two-day event at the headquarters of the bank is to identify environmental and social risks in lending and investment projects as a consequence of the activities of the financial and banking sector. Among the participants there were risk managers and analysts from banks, CSR and sustainability professionals, government representatives and consultants.

According to a recent announcement, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) has achieved a huge number of the Global Village visitors through its Financial Education Campaign. As the main sponsor of the campaign for the second year, ADIB supports the event as part of its strategy to help and promote initiatives launched by the government endorsing the UAE’s tourism and entertainment industries. Some of the exclusive services the bank offers at the venue are providing ATMs as well as setting up specially designed mobile branches. There, visitors have the opportunity to receive information about financial management and ADIB’s unique products and service.

A three-day regional symposium dedicated to the role of corporations in promoting social responsibility towards labor in the countries of the Gulf region was inaugurated on January 8th at the UN House in Misref. The event was organized by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in partnership with the Ministry of Awqaf and the Embassy of The Netherlands. The symposium was of significant importance for the GCC countries because it will benefit not only the corporations or company’s CSR but in particular the citizens and expatriate laborers.

The Global Islamic Microfinance Forum in the UAE united MFI’s of 27 Countries to elaborate on the development of Islamic Microfinance. The event was marked by unanimity on the decision to work together for the advancement of Islamic Microfinance globally. The Forum took place on 8th-10th December 2012, in Dubai World Trade Centre, UAE. Among the delegates there were experts from countries such as UAE, Pakistan, India, UK, Bangladesh, USA, UK Bahrain, Yemen, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Kirghizstan, Mauritius, Kenya, Canada, France, Egypt, Philippine, Uganda, Iraq, Nigeria, and Sudan. Key topics included bringing together the Islamic Microfinance Institutions on a single platform as well as the role of Islamic Microfinance in poverty alleviation. Furthermore, Shariah and related issues of Islamic Microfinance Institutions and their solutions were discussed.

? three-day Financial Literacy Training of Trainers course was organized and held by Silatech - a social enterprise aiming to to increase employment and entrepreneurship among youth in the Middle East and North Africa. 20 instructors from the Sudan Academy for Banking and Financial Sciences (SABFS) took part. After the training, they now can offer a four months long microfinance development program to approximately 1,000 credit officers in Sudan. The materials used in the training were developed by US-based Microfinance Opportunities.

A meeting of financial regulators, experts, jurists, academics and stakeholders from all around the world is coming up, aiming to brainstorm on how to strategically promote growth and realign the practices of Islamic finance and economics with a view to opening new frontiers for the growth of the industry. The 4th Langkawi Islamic Finance and Economics (LIFE-4) Global Forum is organized by the Insaniah University, College, Malaysia, together with Deloitte, Islamic Development Bank, IBFIM-Malaysia and Rayyan Ventures Ltd. It will ensure a global platform for discussing key issues around the competitiveness, growth and sustainability of Islamic finance. The LIFE-4 Global Forum will take place mid-February 2013 at Sheraton Hotels and Towers, Langkawi Island, in Malaysia. The forum is titled 'Islamic Financial Planning and Wealth Management as the New Frontier for Global Islamic Banking and Finance Industry'.

Dear Reader,

Islamic finance had another great year. Many of its market segments progressed, like for example the Sukuk market gaining more maturity. Despite the ongoing debt crisis a good sign of hope and happiness.

Nevertheless we are - as an industry - still not satisfied with the achievements. Islamic finance shall grow stronger in terms of social impact and in terms of substance:

Hence, please allow me to re-iterate my call for participating in international initiatives beyond just our own industry to learn and spread knowledge and experience:

Calling Islamic financial institutions to become member of the United Nations Finance Initiative
http://www.islamicfinance.de/?q=node/811

Inshallah we see more Islamic financial institutions taking a lead in SRI, Social Impact Investing and other approaches while contributing with Islamic finance knowdledge to the conventional industry. The time is now; and there are signs that Malaysia aims for a lead:
http://www.islamicfinance.de/?q=node/4151

The International Islamic Financial Market (IIFM) is progressing on a variety of Sharia products issued. This was made known at their 27th board meeting which was hosted by Kuwait Finance House - Bahrain in Manama. The mentioned products include Interbank Unrestricted Wakalah standards, Islamic Currency Hedging product standards and Collateralised (Rahn) Product Standard. Moreover, the board reached an agreement on the initiation of several new standards among which Ijarah sukuk standardisation as well as consultation on credit support arrangement concerning Islamic hedging.

Dubai Chamber's Corporate Governance conference will be held on November 28. The main topic of the conference with a title "Dubai Dialogue: Corporate Governance and Value Creation" is centered around the overall emerging trends in corporate governance and the importance of adopting the right structures and the roles of corporate boards.

The second Hawkamah MENA judicial and financial colloquium started on the 5th of December at the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). The event lasts for two days and is being held by Hawkamah, the Institute for Corporate Governance in partnership with the Abu Dhabi Council for Economic Development (ADCED), DIFC Courts, Dubai Judicial Institute, European Bank For Reconstruction and Development, ICAEW Middle East, INSOL International and The World Bank Group. Key topics of the colloquium are the legal, financial and policy dimensions of insolvency and restructuring. The discussions include case studies on restructuring and panel discussions on insolvency law reforms.

While the government of Morocco is working on a framework to introduce Islamic finance to the country, an international conference on Islamic finance takes place in Casablanca. Starting on November 29th, insurers, bankers and heads of financial institutions from various countries currently involved or intending to engage in Islamic finance, will take part in the conference. Among the participating countries are Tunisia, the UAE, Malaysia, Bahrain, France and Luxembourg.

On 27 November 2012, the International Shariah Research Academy will host its 2nd colloquium, which is part of initiative to provide a venue for young scholars in Islamic finance. The main topic of the colloquium shall be: Moving Forward reflects the challenges to be addressed as well as tasks to be accomplished by Islamic finance in the next stage of its development. Among the participants will be the Honorable Governor of Bank Negara Malaysia.

New York, November 16, 2012: International development leaders and experts highlighted the importance of Zakat in advancing global development at a forum titled "Linking Muslim Giving to the MDGs". The forum was co-hosted at the United Nations headquarters by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), The World Congress of Muslim Philanthropists, and the UN Millennium Campaign.

"While some countries have made impressive gains in achieving Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), others are falling behind. The Muslim world is no exception. Faith emphasizes building communities, sharing wealth and upholding the rights of the poor and marginalized. Faith-based giving such as Zakat which amounts to billions of dollars needs to be spent in more strategic and effective way to accelerate development in OIC member countries” stated Ambassador Ufuk Gokcen, the permanent observer of OIC at the United Nations, in his address.

For the third time, the Dubai Women Establishment (DWE) will be host of its flagship Arab Women Leadership Forum. The event will take place in Dubai from November 19th to 20th. The main focus of the forum will be issues and opportunities regarding the role of women in the boardroom. The forum is titled "Board Leadership '&' the Case for Diversity." National as well as internationally-recognized speakers, and accomplished women role models will participate. The forum, which is conducted on a yearly basis, plays a key role in DWE's agenda of activities and initiatives with the purpose of promoting the professional development and career advancement of women in the UAE.

The Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry's Centre for Responsible Business together with the Pearl Initiative organized a seminar on integrated reporting. The seminar was held in the Dubai Chamber's head office in Dubai on Wednesday 14th. Professionals in the areas of CSR, sustainability, finance and strategy occupied in listed companies, public sector, private companies, state-owned enterprises and family firms took part in the event. The major topic of the seminar was integrated reporting - what it was and what ossibilities there are to help businesses take more sustainable decisions. Also, means to enable investors and other stakeholders to understand how an organisation is really performing were discussed.

Investcorp together with GCC Board Directors Institute (BDI) will be the hosts of a two and a half day workshop on Corporate Governance. The workshop will be held at the Kempinski Grand & Ixir Hotel Bahrain City starting on December 10 and continuing until December 12, 2012. At the workshop, faculty members of leading advisory institutions will acquaint participants with building board members' capabilities. An extensive peer discussion is included in the programme. Shaikha Mai bint Mohammed Al Khalifa, Minister Of Culture of the Kingdom Of Bahrain, will discuss the topics of Culture and Bahrain at the BDI alumni dinner on the second night of the workshop. A keynote speech at the welcome dinner will be held by CEO of Gulf Air Samer Majali. Its topic will be "Establishing a Strong Corporate Governance Framework at Gulf Air".

Dear Reader,

The German language book on Islamic finance by the Editor of IslamicFinance.de and Dr Wackerbeck from Booz Consultants is now translated to Chinese.

Please find the biographical information below:

Authors: Michael Gassner / Philipp Wackerbeck
Title: Islamic Finance – Islam-gerechte Finanzanlagen und
Finanzierungen
ISBN number: 978-7-5139-0217-5
PUBLISHER: Beijing - Democracy and Construction Press
Pre-Publication Date: 2012.7

Full biographical details: http://db.lib.bua.edu.cn/asord/asorditem.php?asord_marc_no=0001344540

Orders: http://www.amazon.cn/%E4%BC%8A%E6%96%AF%E5%85%B0%E9%87%91%E8%9E%8D-%E7%B...

Book review about the German language original: http://www.rpi-virtuell.net/workspace/24686AD5-936C-476D-9EA0-65E2968590...

Best regards,

Michael Gassner

In conclusion of the two-day Muscat International Islamic Finance Forum a set of key recommendations was compiled by the organisers. The recommendations are a result of the discussions among the participants which included senior industry figures, global investors, takaful operators, bankers, as well as top Shariah scholars. The recommendations include the following areas: regulatory framework, Shariah, asset liability management (ALM), in-country value (development of real economic sectors & SME), asset / fund management, education, takaful, sukuk, and media & awareness.

The two-day inaugural Islamic Banking Summit Africa (IBSA), which was held at at the Djibouti Palace Kempinski, Djibouti, focused on topics concerning 'capturing the Africa opportunity in Islamic finance'. More than 200 leading figures in the international Islamic banking and finance industry took part in the discussions. The event was officially supported by the Central Bank of Djibouti. The programme of the first day included keynotes from President of the Republic of Djibouti Ismail Omar Guelleh, and Governor of the Central Bank of Djibouti Djama M. Haid.

The second National Islamic Microfinance Conference, which was jointly organized by the State Bank of Pakistan, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS) and Farz Foundation, was recently held. At the conference, it was discussed that it was necessary for State Bank of Pakistan to develop a new policy instrument to deal with the financial needs of the small businesses. It was further noted that skilled people in the Islamic micro-finance industry were needed. A suggestion was made for Wafaqul-Madaris to introduce Islamic microfinance as a subject in order to be of help in guiding the banks who are working in this sector after studying.