IslamicFinance.de

Islamic Development Bank (IDB) President Ahmad Mohamed Ali Al Madani has said they are ready to support Turkey to maintain the country's stable investment environment in the wake of the July 15 coup attempt. Al Madani said that the Turkish government has continued to promote domestic and foreign investments by boosting the liquidity of its markets to minimize short-term risks since the coup attempt. He noted that the establishment of the Sovereign Welfare Fund (SWF) is an extremely important development as it will help the government transfer its achievements to strategically important sectors. Al Madani remarked that Turkey will maintain its 3 to 4% growth rate despite its dependency on foreign energy.

The opposition Syrian National Coalition has received a last-minute invitation to Wednesday’s Friends of Syria meeting in Amman, which acting chief George Sabra will attend. The meeting is expected to focus on efforts spearheaded by the United States and Russia to organise a peace conference in Geneva next month. In the same time, Islamic Development Bank has temporarily suspended Syria’s membership, according to IDB President Ahmad Mohamed Ali Al Madani. Mr. Madani said the decision was taken by the bank’s Board of Governors, citing a Syria resolution by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation that was discussed at the board’s recent meeting. He added the IDB was set to give Syrian refugees any kind of help, but stressed its humanitarian funds were strictly limited.

Islamic Development Bank (IDB) president Dr Ahmad Mohamed Ali Al Madani suggested four key areas for the Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) to focus on durich his keynote address at the 10th IFSB Summit in Kuala Lumpur. These include the creation of a conducive enabling environmen, adoption of IFSB and AAOIFI standards by all stakeholders, shortage of qualified manpower and financial inclusion through Islamic microfinance, supported by Zakat and Awqaf. In this context, IDB hopes for more collaborative opportunities with IFSB. Meanwhile, Sheikh Abdulla Saoud Al-Thani, chairman of IFSB 2013, highlighted some of the challenges that lie ahead in the Islamic financial service industry like the under-penetrated Takaful industry.