In the News: Government of Dubai Invites Ethica to Trade Delegation
Ethica Institute of Islamic Finance has been invited by the Government of Dubai to a trade mission to Indonesia and Thailand
Dubai, UAE, February 11, 2015 — The Government of Dubai has invited Ethica Institute of Islamic Finance to a high level trade delegation to Indonesia and Thailand to promote Islamic finance and strengthen trade ties. Ethica is a Dubai-based training and certification institute that has certified professionals in over 160 financial institutions across 64 countries. Dubai Exports, an agency of the Dubai Department of Economic Development and the Trade Promotion Organization, is the organizer of the Islamic Economy Trade Mission to Indonesia and Thailand.
In the trade mission delegates meet with high ranking government officials and private sector professionals and companies showcase their products and services to regional buyers. Previously, Dubai invited Ethica to trade missions to Europe, Australia, and South East Asia. The aim is to promote Dubai-based businesses and take advantage of a burgeoning Islamic economy. According to a number of studies, the global halal market is expected to jump to US$10 trillion from the current level of US$1 trillion by 2030. Socio-economic indicators show that with an increasing per capita GDP in the Islamic world and very high population growth rates the size of the Islamic economy is expected to increase substantially.
With respect to Islamic finance, currently Indonesia and Thailand follow Malaysian standards not accepted in the majority of the world’s Islamic finance jurisdictions, where AAOIFI, or the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions, is the more common standard. Ethica’s spokesperson said, “By harmonizing global Islamic finance standards to AAOIFI, countries like Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand have better access to the liquidity in the Gulf, where many Malaysian standards are not accepted. We hope this trade delegation will help bring about this harmonization.”
