Amana Global, a fully owned subsidiary of Amana Takaful PLC recently signed an MoU in Colombo with the Islamic Banking and Finance Institute of Malaysia (IBFIM) in a bid to build capacity in the Islamic Finance industry.
The move to launch such a program was driven by the emerging need for industry specific knowledge in in the field of Islamic Finance in Sri Lanka. At present there is a dearth of professional services available to satisfy the demand, the local company said. “As the pioneers of the subject (Islamic Finance) in Sri Lanka we thought it was apt to leverage our links with Malaysia to bring the best in education and coaching to the island for the benefit of all parties.
Moreover, Malaysia has been in the forefront of the development of Islamic Finance and is known to be a hub for industry best practices and knowledge on the topic,” said Mr. Fawas Farook, General Manager, Amana Global Limited. “We have also sought a facilitator to make this partnership work and thus brought in First International Consultancy (Malaysia), which possesses a wealth of experience in propagating Islamic Finance learning,” he added.
In the initial stage Amana Global, together with IBFIM, will offer short term courses for public audiences and corporate entities. Customised programs or modules will be the distinct advantage of the initial stage.
Islamic Finance is gaining momentum in the Island since Amana Investment first began operations in 1995. Today, many conventional banking and finance companies have boldly moved into offer Shari’ah based solutions, highlighting the growing acceptance of Islamic Finance as a viable option for businesses and individuals alike in the long term.
IBFIM is a well-established institution in Malaysia designated as an industry-owned and regulator linked institute dedicated to producing well-trained, highly competent personnel and executives with the required talent in Islamic Finance.
Speaking at the event, the Chief Executive Officer of IBFIM, Dato Dr. Adnan Alias explained that besides the highly sought after courses mentioned above they also offer a course titled Certified Islamic Finance Qualification (CIFQ) through a progression route where there are four membership levels namely Associate Member, Member, Associate Fellow and Fellow. Presently Amana Global has two subsidiaries under its wing - Amana Takaful Maldives PLC which is to be the first listed insurance provider in the Maldives, and Amana Asset Management Limited which publishes the White List on a weekly basis in addition to managing a significant portfolio of assets. In the near future Amana Global is also looking to venture into stock brokering in Shari’ah compliant stocks in Maldives in partnership with a licensed stock broker in the country.
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