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First AED 30 million Islamic banking studies center to be established in the UAE |
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A center for Islamic banking and finance will be established at American University of Sharjah (AUS) as a result of an AED 30 million endowment given by Sharjah Islamic Bank (SIB), according to a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the two organizations at a special ceremony held today. Based at the AUS School of Business and Management (SBM), the Sharjah Islamic Bank Center for Islamic Banking and Finance (SIBCIBF) is envisaged as a center of excellence that will serve as a focal point for instruction, research and outreach activities in this field at both the regional and international level. Speaking on the occasion Mohammed Abdallah, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Sharjah Islamic Bank, said that the establishment of the center will contribute in enriching the education and research at AUS as envisioned by His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qassimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah. He noted that the center also aims to conduct academic research in the field of Islamic banking and finance as well as cater to the increasing demands of the marketplace for qualified graduates in this field. "As a result of the shortage of institutes specializing in Islamic banking and training - whether in the academic or the professional sphere - there is a great demand in the field of Islamic banking which has seen dynamic growth over the past two decades. Despite growing at a rate of between 20 50 percent, its framework still requires renewal and update," he said. "This center will focus on the training and equipping of human resource. It will also focus on studies and research through new programs that will contribute in providing qualified personnel to the banking sector." He stated that this MoU is part of the bank’s strategy to establish partnerships with institutions that are working to play their part in the development of the UAE and its nationals. "This endowed center indicates the Sharjah Islamic Bank’s commitment to exposing students to banking and finance based on Sharia principles," said Dr. Peter Heath, Chancellor of AUS. "Generations of students will benefit from the new educational Center, which will help strengthen our students’ ability to meet the challenges of tomorrow while retaining the core values and practices of Islamic finance. Students and professors at AUS will be able to contribute significant research on the continued growth and advantages of Islamic banking," he added. The SIBCIBF will develop and advance research in Islamic business studies and Islamic financial products and services. It will also ensure the broad dissemination of research results and studies about Islamic banking and finance to academic practitioners and consumer audiences. The center will support numerous academic activities, including the establishment and support of the Sharjah Islamic Bank Professor of Islamic Banking and Finance position, the scholar-in-residence program, research fellowships, graduate student assistantships, undergraduate student fellowships, conferences, and research grants, among others. "The Sharjah Islamic Bank Center for Islamic Banking and Finance will allow the innovative advances in community-based banking to be combined with in-depth training of students in approaches of business based on a strong value foundation to provide for the diversified curriculum of AUS," said Dr. Nada Mourtada-Sabbah, Vice Chancellor of Development and Alumni Affairs, who thanked the Sharjah Islamic Bank "for their generous donation and their far-sightedness to partner with higher education to enrich our programs and benefit the community. This will make available culturally appropriate solutions for Gulf society in the future," she added. "The best of universities are market places of ideas. The director of the center will be a much accomplished educator skilled in the many techniques of banking and an individual who will have the vision to innovate additional methods appropriate to Islamic banking." "The School of Business and Management is honored to be the beneficiary of Sharjah Islamic Bank’s generosity, as evidenced by their creation of this important Center. We are committed to excellence in the programs of the Center as we work to help us all better understand Islamic banking and the workings of an Islamic bank. The support the Center derives from the SIB endowment which will permit us to pursue programs and activities that would not have been feasible without this important commitment," said Dr. Malcolm Richards, Dean of SBM. In recent years, Islamic banking and finance has become one of international finance’s most dynamic and fastest growing areas. It prohibits interest earned for lending of money (riba) but achieves the desired results of conventional banking by various methods enhanced with strong community values. Islamic banking has demonstrated its viability during the recent recession with admirable rates of growth. The School of Business and Management at AUS has long recognized this fact and consequently has developed a number of courses to meet the increasing student demand. Undergraduate courses in Islamic economics, Islamic banking and finance, and Islamic finance have been taught at the university for the past five years, with a new Islamic accounting course scheduled to be offered in Fall 2010. A minor in Islamic finance at the undergraduate level is also under consideration by the Department of Accounting and Finance, along with an MBA concentration in Islamic banking and finance. The signing ceremony was also attended by Salem Al Qaseer, Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs; Dr. Thomas Hochstettler, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs; and other senior officials from AUS and SIB.
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