CENTRE OF ISLAMIC BANKING & ECONOMICS

Press Release

The Global Islamic Microfinance Forum Ready to Set New Standards

The Forum will determine the Standards and strategic policies for Sustainable Islamic Microfinance

Development.

September 16, 2013.

.(Pakistan) The Global Islamic Microfinance Forum on Islamic Microfinance is going to be held in U.A.E on 6th

October, 2013 in which the delegates of more than 30 countries are expected. The purpose of Forum is to

introduce Islamic Microfinance in the global canvas as an effective tool for poverty alleviation and Social

development, to set its standards, to develop Islamic Microfinance internationally and to have dialogue with

International Donor/Development agencies for sustainable development. Two days specialized workshop is

being arranged after the forum in which the Shari’ah standards and marketing strategies to develop, operate

and sustain Islamic Microfinance Institutions will be discussed. It should be noted that this forum is being jointly

arranged by AlHuda Centre of Islamic Banking and Economics (CIBE) and Akhuwat. Akhuwat is a Pakistan based

institute which has distributed US $ 47.65 million amongst 300,000 families via Islamic Microfinance.

Executive Director of Akhuwat, Mr. Amjad Saqib said that through this Forum, Islamic Microfinance will be

introduced as a sustainable system around the world so that Islamic Microfinance could be properly utilized in

order to take the world out of the darkness of poverty.

While briefing about the purpose and aims of this Forum, Chief Executive Officer of AlHuda Centre of Islamic

Banking and Economics, Mr. Muhammad Zubair Mughal said that poverty is going up due to the failure of

present microfinance system whereas in order to solve this problem, whole world is looking towards Islamic

Microfinance. He said that if Islamic Microfinance is not included in the strategies for alleviating poverty then

CENTRE OF ISLAMIC BANKING & ECONOMICS

the achievement of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) of United Nations would become so difficult

because Muslims are 46% of World’s total poverty and United Nations has added 26 countries from the 57

Countries of OIC among the Least Developed Countries. So, Islamic Microfinance is mandatory in order to

alleviate poverty from the Muslim Countries because Muslims avoid Conventional Microfinance due to the

factor of interest, as Interest is strictly prohibited in Islamic that is way Interest is an important reason for the

poverty in Muslim Countries. He also added that current facts and figures, as per the latest report of poverty

reduction in India, China and other countries, are showing that poverty in Muslim countries is increasing day by

day while in non Muslim countries it is decreasing constantly. It is worth to mentioning that Islamic Microfinance

is a system, it is not a religion rather it can be utilized/operated by both Muslims and Non-Muslims for social

development & poverty alleviation.

He further said that now the time has come that the International Organizations like UN, ADB, IFC, USAID, GIZ,

DIFD, and IFAD etc. have to play their role to alleviate poverty from the world by including Islamic Microfinance

in the strategies to reduce poverty. He said that Islamic Microfinance has more characteristics to alleviate

poverty in comparison with Conventional Microfinance and it can be easily integrated with all the models of

Microfinance like Grameen Model, Village Banking Model, Co-operative Model and Self Help Group Model etc.

So in order to introduce Islamic Microfinance in the world, very fewer changes would be needed to make in

Microfinance industry. He also added that in Global Forum the Islamic Microfinance related models i.e. Qarz-e-

Hasana, Waqf, Islamic Commercial Microfinance, Zakat, BMT’s and some other Islamic approaches to alleviate

poverty will be discussed in detail.

Forum shall last for 3 days in Dubai, at the end of which, a declaration will be issued while Dr. Fatima

Mohammed Yousif Al-Balooshi (Minister of Social Development Kingdom of Bahrain) will be the Guest of Honor

of the Forum and with some other distinguished speakers such as: Mufti Barkatulla (Shariah Advisor- Islamic

Bank of Britain), Mr. Mohammed Kroessin (Global Microfinance Advisor – IRF World Wide, UK), Dr. Ajaz Ahmed

Khan (Microfinance Advisor – Care International, UK), Mr. Zaigham Mehmood Rizvi (Renowned International

Expert of Islamic Banking and Housing Finance - Washington, USA), Mr. Zeinoul Abedien Cajee (Founding

CEO/Management Board – National Awqaf Foundation of South Africa), Mr. Mahesh (CEO – Umex Securities,

UK), Mr. Saleem Ranjha (Director Akhuwat, Pakistan), Mufti Aziz Ur Rehman (Manager Shariah - Mawarid

Finance, Dubai), Ms. Thamina Anwar (Founder and CEO Awqaf New Zealand), Mr. Atef Ebrahim (CEO – Family

Bank, Bahrain), Mr. Mohamed El Mehdi Zidani (Director Baraka Editions, France), Justice Retired Khalil Ur

Rehman (Shariah Advisor – AlBaraka Islamic Bank, Chairman Punjab Halal Development Agency, Government of

Pakistan) and some Industry Specialists and Researchers from 15 countries will add value to the event with their

participation.

For further details, please visit: www.alhudacibe.com/imfc2013

Head Office: 192- Ahmad Block, Ph: +92-42-35913096-8 E-mail: info@alhudacibe.com New Garden Town Lahore, Pakistan. Fax: +92 -42-35913056 Website: www.alhudacibe.com