BDO Jordan-Islamic Financial Advisory Services (IFAS) participated in the 3rd Annual Symposium on Islamic Financial Products, which convened in Khartoum, Sudan on April 6th and 7th, 2011.
Mr. Mohammad Al-Nobani, Managing Partner BDO Jordan, Dr. Khawla Al-Nobani, and Mr. Husam Sha’ath both partners in BDO Jordan-Islamic Financial Advisory Services (IFAS) attended the event.
Mr. Mohammad Al-Nobani presented a paper on Sharia Supervisory Boards. The paper was a joint effort between BDO Jordan IFAS and the General Council of Islamic Banks and Financial Institutions (CIBAFI). It challenged the sustainability of one of the cornerstones of the Islamic Financial Industry (IFI), boldly underscored the underlying root causes, and suggested a revised model that would support the IFI into its next phase of development and growth. This paper was thought provoking, created heated debates in the Industry and demonstrated BDO IFAS’s thought leadership in the field.
Dr. Khawla Al-Nobani presented a paper on, what she termed, the three “schools of thought” in the IFI. Namely the one led by institutions in Sudan, the one practiced by institutions in the Arabian Gulf and led by Bahrain, and the one led by institutions in Malaysia. While the categorization is based on geographical/regional grounds, each school has its own distinctive features. This paper identified some of the successes and challenges each school faces, and advocated some degree of harmonization to support the healthy growth of the industry.
The BDO IFAS team visited the Central Bank of Sudan, and met with the Governor of the Bank. Visited the Khartoum Stock Exchange, and met with its President; and visited El-Nilein Bank a Government owned bank, and one of the largest in Sudan, and met with its President. The Symposium attendees visited Merowi Dam, a $1.8 billion Merowe Dam was funded by China Export Import Bank and Arab financiers, and built by Chinese, German and French companies.
It is to be noted that Sudan is the only country in the world whose financial industry is based purely on Islamic Finance, where all of its 28 banks and 15 insurance companies are Sharia-compliant.