DUBAI TO LAUNCH FIRST ONLINE PORTAL FOR ISLAMIC ECONOMY

Dubai, 20 Rabi’ul Awwal 1435/11 January 2015 (MINA) – Dubai has announced plans to launch the world’s first online portal for the Islamic economy as part of its ambition to become its global capital.

The Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre (DIEDC), which is tasked with developing initiatives in the emirate, said new initiative this year would also include the launch of an international centre for governance of Islamic companies and an international centre for accreditation of halal products.

Mohammed Abdullah Al Gergawi, chairman of DIEDC, confirmed that it would continue to set an “ambitious course” in the upcoming year by launching initiatives to enhance and grow the Islamic economy, Arabianbussiness quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA).

Al Gergawi made his comments at a review meeting of the board of the DIEDC, saying: “We work hand-in-hand with our public and private sector partners within and outside the UAE to further drive growth across the seven pillars that the DIEDC is founded on.

“This is done through implementing a comprehensive strategy of practical initiatives and programmes that drive Dubai’s Islamic economy ambitions.”

The board reviewed the development of current projects which are focused on knowledge, halal product standards, Islamic finance criteria, conferences and fairs.

Essa Kazim, secretary general, DIEDC, said: “In 2014, we witnessed the launch of a range of quality initiatives and programmes under the DIEDC umbrella… We will leverage this momentum to expand our horizons and widen the scope of our work to achieve our ultimate goals in the year ahead.”

DIEDC is built on the seven pillars of finance, the halal industry, tourism, digital infrastructure, art, knowledge and Islamic standards.

The entity is mandated to establish a sound infrastructure and a comprehensive framework to oversee the implementation of initiatives that lead to developing an enabling Islamic economy.

The Islamic economy has gained increasing significance in recent years due to the surge in demand for sustainable, sharia-compliant services and products from the 1.5 billion Muslim population as well as non-Muslims worldwide.

Sharia-compliant economic activities currently account for 11 percent of the global economy. The Islamic economy sector is on course to achieve accelerated growth in the immediate future, at the rate of 10-15 percent annually.(T/P09/R04)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)