Themed Inspiring Change, the summit will take place on October 11 and 12, 2016, an Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai, UAE under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, VP and PM of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. The two-day event will discuss several aspects of the Islamic economy amidst optimistic projections for its different sectors, and the impressive growth it has witnessed in the past several years.
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| Source: Dubai Chamber. HE Majid. |
HE Majid Saif Al Ghurair, Chairman, Dubai Chamber, and Board Member of the Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre, said: “The fact that influential leaders, decision makers, and experts in key economic sectors have all converged in Dubai for the Global Islamic Economy Summit only goes to prove the emirate’s position as a true capital for the Islamic economy. It reflects the tremendous efforts exerted by Dubai to shed light on the concepts and mechanisms of the Islamic economy. The summit’s main topics are broad and comprehensive and, thus, allow for an open discussion about the components of the Islamic economy, all the while shedding a light on innovative solutions to confront the challenges that face the global economy today and achieve sustainable development.”
"Furthermore, GIES 2016 welcomes a responsible partnership among all economic sectors, regardless of cultures and backgrounds, to identify the catalysts for growth. We need to remember that such growth can only be achieved through the concerted efforts of international entities and officials engaged in broader development issues. Through hosting a spectrum of leaders across sectors, GIES embodies the values that the Islamic economy stands for and strengthens its credibility as a key contributor in the revival of the global economy."
The list of speakers includes representatives from the Fitch Global credit rating agency, Awqaf and Minor Affairs Authority, Abdulla Al Ghurair Foundation for Education, Capital Markets Authority Kenya, the Louvre Museum in France, in addition to representatives from the International Halal Accreditation Forum, Boubyan Bank in Kuwait, Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority, the Emirates Foundation for the youth, Ernst & Young, and Asda'a Burson-Marsteller.
The keynote address for this year's summit will be delivered by HH Abdulaziz Al Ghurair, Chairman of Abdulla Al Ghurair Foundation for Education and the CEO of Mashreq Group and a member of the Board of Directors of Abdullah Al Ghurair Group of Companies, one of the biggest and most successful business groups in the UAE and the Middle East.
Other speakers include Clare Woodcraft, CEO of the Emirates Foundation, which focuses on guiding, inspiring and empowering youth in the UAE, and Bashar Al Natoor, Head of Islamic Finance in Fitch Ratings, who is in charge of coordinating all Islamic Finance activities across Fitch's teams, bringing together dedicated analytical and industry expertise into a centralised and focused Islamic finance group.
Also taking to the podium are: HE Chiara Appendino, Mayor of the City of Turin, Italy; Mohammed Badri, Managing Director of International Halal Accreditation Forum; Abdulla Al Tuwaijri, Deputy CEO of Boubyan Bank in Kuwait; Marcie Merriman, Executive Director for Growth Strategy and Retail Innovation at Ernst and Young; and Hassan Al Damluji, Head of Middle East Relations of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the US-based philanthropic organisation that works to alleviate poverty and spread healthcare and education around the world.
HE Tayeb Al Rais, Secretary General of Awqaf and Minor Affairs, the organisation that supervises the legal aspects of Islamic awqaf and investments, in addition to educating minors and investing their money in shari'ah-compliant avenues, will also speak.
Other speakers at GIES 2016 will include Paul Muthaura, Chief Executive of Capital Markets Authority Kenya; Yannick Lintz, Islamic Art Director of the Louvre Museum in France; Sunil John, CEO of Asda'a Burson-Marsteller, from the public relations sector in the Middle East region; Hans Henrik Christensen, Director, Silicon Oasis Founders of Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority; Carol Bierr, Scholar for Islamic Studies and Islamic Geometry; and Maysa Jalbout, CEO of Abdulla Al Ghurair Foundation for Education, which strives to equip the youth in the Arab world with the necessary skills to become the leaders of the future.
"The elite group of speakers and researchers in the sectors of Islamic economics that this year's summit is set to attract from around the world stands to enrich the discussions and foster a greater exchange of knowledge and opinions with regards to finding sustainable solutions to the issues affecting the Islamic economy," added HE Majid.
HE went on to explain that the summit is "keen on promoting innovation in the effort to overcome the challenges facing the global economy in the 21st century, and establishing a strong foundation for the Islamic model - one that is more in line with the efforts of the UAE government to build a better future, as well as to make Dubai a global capital of the Islamic economy."
Abdulla Mohammed Al Awar, CEO of Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre (DIEDC), said: "The upcoming edition of the Global Islamic Economy Summit examines the challenges and scope of the future development of the Islamic economy and calls for such development to be comprehensive, impartial and sustainable."
Al Awar also noted, “Given the fact that each sector of the Islamic economy offers incredible potential to impact the overall economic culture, GIES 2016 will help further clarify its many nuances. We are confident that a renewed understanding of the sector will greatly benefit all segments of society, particularly the youth to help them apply the knowledge gained for achieving sustainable social and economic development. We believe that with greater clarity comes greater appreciation – inspiring people to adopt moral principles that makes this responsible economic model unique in all respects.”
Nadim Najjar, MD, MENA, Thomson Reuters, said: “The current global economic climate and the search for new underserved markets has brought a fresh spotlight onto the various sectors of the Islamic economy. The convergence of the shari'ah compliant industries is likely to be a new engine of growth that engages both the Muslim and non-Muslim economies across the world.”
Interested?
Day one – October 11
Plenary Sessions
Today’s youth, tomorrow’s leaders: scalable solutions to empower the next generation will discuss ways to mould young Muslims into adaptable leaders and productive members of their communities and equip them to assume transformational roles in the Muslim world and beyond. With the Muslim youth segment growing at twice the rate of its global counterpart, governments in Islamic countries are faced with unique challenges as they work to create opportunities that cater to the young generation’s aspirations and ambitions.
The second plenary session will take on philanthropy in the Islamic world, shedding light on the successes of philanthropy and endowments in developed markets, which have adopted innovative models to ensure high returns and a strong social impact. On the flip side, Islamic charity funds face many difficulties as they generate low returns and generally have minimal social impact on the societies they are meant to support. The session will also explore effective strategies for managing Islamic charity funds in a way that creates real impact in modern society.
A third plenary session tackles blended finance – the optimal mixture of multilateral financial institutions (MFI), infrastructure fund allocations, private sector investment, and charitable grants. The session explores the role of wealthy Muslim governments, sovereign wealth funds, and Islamic financial institutions in moving towards achieving the sustainable development goals within a realistic timeframe.
Parallel sessions
Two afternoon tracks will run in parallel. The first pair of sessions will look into the evolution of Islamic art and the international halal market, respectively.
The first session will explore the aesthetic transformation and investment appeal of Islamic art, which now encompasses contemporary works by Middle Eastern artists that draw inspiration from their cultural heritage. Islamic art is also proving rewarding: Tutela Capital reveals that the average price in 2015 for ancient Islamic artefacts sold at auction stood at nearly US$20,000.
As for the halal industry session, participants will look at halal products from a pure economic angle. At present, countries belonging to the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) import up to half of their vegetables, a third (33%) of processed foods, and 19% of animal products.
The second pair of sessions examine the role of social media in promoting modest Islamic fashion. Several startups are harnessing the reach of digital channels to establish themselves in this market – valued at US$243 billion in 2015 – and breaking down the traditional barriers to entry in the process.
The second pair of sessions examine the role of social media in promoting modest Islamic fashion. Several startups are harnessing the reach of digital channels to establish themselves in this market – valued at US$243 billion in 2015 – and breaking down the traditional barriers to entry in the process.
The parallel session asks whether sukuk can deliver a way out of global economic uncertainty. As the plummeting oil prices and political and economic uncertainty continue to take their toll on government budgets, sukuk could offer governments an alternative avenue to fund their projects.
Day two – October 12
Day two – October 12
Plenary Sessions and Aspire Talk
Day two will kick off with a plenary session on the digitisation of the banking sector and examine whether Islamic banks are equipped to handle these swift transformations – especially given that the global banking sector, which has undergone various transformations since the nineties, has been slow to adopt innovation and technology in the past decade. Some experts have even questioned the significance of traditional banking institutions in the future.
Next on the agenda is the Aspire Talk, which will look at Dubai, the brand. Through “Brand Dubai”, the emirate has succeeded in evoking collective emotions about the city and influencing how people around the world feel about it.
The next plenary session concludes the morning activities for the second day with a look at startups in the Islamic economy; despite tremendous challenges, a handful of visionary entrepreneurs have succeeded at captivating Muslim investors and commercialising their products and services. A panel asks how these Muslim-market startups can transform themselves into multimillion dollar businesses and what is required for them to reach the next stage of development.
Parallel sessions
Two parallel tracks feature sessions on reviving Islamic art and design and crowdfunding in the Islamic economy, respectively. The first session will discuss the non-traditional applications of Islamic art in the Muslim world and beyond. The scope of Islamic art has expanded in recent years to include residential and commercial architecture, museums and art galleries, and even corporate branding and cultural identity.
Next on the agenda is the Aspire Talk, which will look at Dubai, the brand. Through “Brand Dubai”, the emirate has succeeded in evoking collective emotions about the city and influencing how people around the world feel about it.
The next plenary session concludes the morning activities for the second day with a look at startups in the Islamic economy; despite tremendous challenges, a handful of visionary entrepreneurs have succeeded at captivating Muslim investors and commercialising their products and services. A panel asks how these Muslim-market startups can transform themselves into multimillion dollar businesses and what is required for them to reach the next stage of development.
Parallel sessions
Two parallel tracks feature sessions on reviving Islamic art and design and crowdfunding in the Islamic economy, respectively. The first session will discuss the non-traditional applications of Islamic art in the Muslim world and beyond. The scope of Islamic art has expanded in recent years to include residential and commercial architecture, museums and art galleries, and even corporate branding and cultural identity.
The second discussion explores ways to accelerate the adoption of crowdfunding and use it to bridge the funding gap in Muslim markets. According to figures from the World Bank, crowdfunding has evolved into a US$16 billion market, mainly concentrated in North America and Europe. In developing countries however, crowdfunding was estimated to be worth US$327 million in 2015 – 2% of the global total.
The sessions for day two include The Gen Z effect: can the Islamic economy meet post-millennial expectations?, which examines whether the Islamic economy is equipped to cater to the world’s youngest population and if governments in Muslim countries can meet post-millennial expectations when it comes to employment, education and government services. The second session explores the subject of experiential tourism seeing as over the past few years, the Muslim travel market has rightly focused on family tourism, which was estimated to be worth US$151 billion in 2015 and forecast to surpass US$243 billion by 2021.
Closing session
In the final session of the summit, participants will explore whether the Islamic economy can skip the third industrial revolution. The introduction of technology and communication has presented a unique opportunity to avoid some of the traditional development phases and move directly to the technology revolution.
The sessions for day two include The Gen Z effect: can the Islamic economy meet post-millennial expectations?, which examines whether the Islamic economy is equipped to cater to the world’s youngest population and if governments in Muslim countries can meet post-millennial expectations when it comes to employment, education and government services. The second session explores the subject of experiential tourism seeing as over the past few years, the Muslim travel market has rightly focused on family tourism, which was estimated to be worth US$151 billion in 2015 and forecast to surpass US$243 billion by 2021.
Closing session
In the final session of the summit, participants will explore whether the Islamic economy can skip the third industrial revolution. The introduction of technology and communication has presented a unique opportunity to avoid some of the traditional development phases and move directly to the technology revolution.
Online registration has closed but on-site passes are available.
Hashtag: #GIES2016