by AUFA MARDHIAH

COLLABORATION between academia, financial institutions and regulatory bodies is crucial to realising the vision for a sustainable humane economy.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said while the government provides full support, collaborative efforts are needed to achieve this.

“I want to see academia, industry and policymakers working together to build and realise a future where Islamic economics and finance is not just an alternative, but a solution that is able to deliver tangible and substantive results — eradicate abject poverty, create jobs with human dignity and generate shared prosperity with equity,” he said in a speech during the launch of the 15th International Conference on Islamic Economics and Finance (ICIEF) today.

Additionally, he is eager to witness the outcomes of a Post-Conference Reset Agenda, aimed at converting the conference’s concepts into actionable policy recommendations for implementation.

The 15th ICIEF conference is organised by the International Islamic University Malaysia’s (IIUM) Kulliyyah of Economics and Management Sciences (KENMS), in collaboration with the Finance Ministry and the International Association for Islamic Economics (IAIE). It is held from Feb 20 to 22, 2024.

Themed “Driving the Agenda for a Sustainable Humane Economy”, it is also held in conjunction with the 40th Anniversary of IIUM, coinciding with one of Malaysia’s core values of Malaysia Madani, which is to promote economic, social and environmental wellbeing through a culture of knowledge and diversity of perspectives.

The conference gathers nearly 500 participants from both local and international communities including Pakistan, the UK, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Turkey, Indonesia, the US, Nigeria, Norway, Germany and India.

Approximately 60 paper presentations and posters, four plenary sessions and keynote addresses, as well as two symposiums on Islamic economics and finance education will be conducted over the course of three days.

Additionally, about 30 scholars from academic and research institutions, as well as practitioners from the private and non-governmental sectors, are involved in the 15th ICIEF plenary sessions.

Also present were Second Finance Minister Senator Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan; governor of Bank Negara Malaysia Datuk Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour; secretary general of the Treasury Datuk Johan Mahmood Merican; IIUM president Tan Sri Samsudin Osman; IIUM rector Prof Emer Tan Sri Dzulkifli Abdul Razak; and IAIE president Prof Emer Datuk Dr Mohd Azmi Omar.