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AMAF Calls the Public to Support Food Aid for Refugees

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The campaign, lined up to run until after Eid Al Fitr, will set up a podium, featuring the replica of a refugee camp and an interactive screen projecting a tent city with a line of children waiting for food, at The Dubai Mall.

 The Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation (AMAF) has urged the public to contribute toward its annual Ramadan campaign for the Salma humanitarian relief programme which provides halal food to victims of wars and natural disasters worldwide.

The campaign, lined up to run until after Eid Al Fitr, will set up a podium, featuring the replica of a refugee camp and an interactive screen projecting a tent city with a line of children waiting for food, at The Dubai Mall.

The Salma team will circulate donation boxes and flyers among visitors and professionals working in TECOM Group’s communities including Dubai Media City, Dubai Internet City, Dubai Sports City, Dubai Design District, Dubai Knowledge Park and Dubai Science Park.

Tayyeb Al Rais, secretary-general of AMAF, said the campaign will help promote the Salma programme and collect donations. “The Salma programme closely monitors the impact of wars and disasters worldwide.”

Unfortunately, the number of refugees globally continues to surge, with children constituting 51 per cent of the total, he said. “From 2015 to 2016, more than 73,000 people have become victims of conflicts and natural disasters in the Islamic world.”

The UN’s latest data shows that more than 700 million people currently live in areas prone to disasters, with the number expected to reach one billion by 2030. These statistics drive us to expand our aid coverage to new countries, he disclosed.

“Supporting the displaced people across the globe through providing food aid, the Salma programme clearly testifies that the endowment model is a viable solution to the world’s humanitarian relief needs.

“In the past three years, the programme helped save thousands of lives through supplying more than 455,000 halal meals and distributing 50 tons of meat to people in Palestine, Yemen, Jordan, Sudan, Tajikistan, the Philippines, and countries of West Africa.”

According to latest UN reports, 65.3 million people across the globe are currently displaced due to wars and natural disasters, including 21.3 million who are classified as refugees. The conflicts are forcing 34,000 people to flee their homes every day, Al Rais elaborated.

“The initiative is executed in collaboration with Emirates Red Crescent, UN’s World Food Programme, Dubai Charity Association, Dar Al Ber and Dubai International Humanitarian City.”

The government and private sector entities, as well as individual donors, help ensure the continuation and expansion of the programme through securing sustainable financial resources, he said. “Donations to the Salma Humanitarian Relief Programme can be made through the website www.salmaaid.com or via text message.”

Originally published on www.khaleejtimes.com

NBF Islamic Recognised as the Best “Shari’a-Compliant Window of the Year”

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National Bank of Fujairah (NBF) PJSC announced today that NBF Islamic has been recognised as the “Shari’a-compliant Window of the year” at The Banker’s Islamic Bank of the Year Awards 2017. This prestigious accolade is a clear indication of NBF’s position as the leading provider of comprehensive suite of Shari’a-compliant banking solutions.

In 2014, NBF launched its Islamic window with retail banking services in its home emirate Fujairah in response to growing customer demand for Shari’a-compliant services. In 2015, the bank broadened its offering and launched its Shari’a-compliant corporate banking services to cater to businesses looking for a reliable and trusted banking partner in the UAE. Since its launch, NBF Islamic has grown at a phenomenal pace, recording an operating income of AED 60.4 million in 2016. Indicative of its success, in 2017 to date, it has registered an asset base of AED 3.5 billion and have also seen its total Islamic financing receivables and Islamic customer deposits reaching AED 2.1 billion and AED 3.2 billion respectively.

NBF’s segmented financing approach has seen it cement its position as the “Bank for Business” in the UAE. Over the years, the bank has endeavoured to create bespoke financing solutions for clients by combining its expertise across areas like trade finance and treasury, with its specialised focus on niche areas like energy and marine, precious metals and diamonds, equipment finance and Emirati businesswomen.

 NBF’s CEO Vince Cook said: “We are very proud to receive this coveted industry recognition only three years after NBF Islamic’s inception. The proposition’s success to date is a testament to the positive feedback we have been receiving from customers. The UAE market has witnessed an increasing demand for Shari’a-compliant banking services as Muslims and non-Muslims begin to appreciate this model as a viable alternative to conventional banking. The UAE government’s efforts to position itself as a global hub for Islamic finance will spur more demand for these services.”“At NBF, we have continuously focused on providing innovative solutions commensurate to clients’ needs in the niche space we operate in. Today, the bank’s priority is to continue developing NBF Islamic into a full-fledged proposition encompassing a comprehensive range of solutions for both retail and corporate banking segments while adhering to the best practice governance standards and Shari’a principles. Given the success we have achieved so far, we are eager to grow our portfolio even further and continue to grow our market share while adding value to our clientele.”

This is not NBF Islamic’s first feat; it was awarded the “Best New Islamic Window – UAE” at the Islamic Business and Finance Awards 2016, only two years since its launch. The latest award reflects the bank’s dedication to supporting the government’s aspirations to transform itself into the global capital of Islamic economy.

Originally published on www.albawaba.com

Emirates Islamic is First Islamic Bank to Integrate Blockchain Technology into Cheques

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Emirates Islamic has announced that it will introduce blockchain technology into its cheques as a fraud prevention measure.

Termed ‘Cheque Chain’, Emirates Islamic is the first Islamic bank in UAE to undertake this initiative to enhance security in the popular payment method. Emirates Islamic will issue new cheque books carrying a unique QR (Quick Response) code on every leaf, along with a string of 20 random characters.

“Blockchain has the potential to significantly increase security and protection in banking transactions and we are delighted to be among the first in the UAE to utilise this new technology,” said Suhail Bin Tarraf, Chief Operating Officer, Emirates Islamic. “We anticipate that Cheque Chain will dramatically reduce cheque frauds in this market helping us provide our customers greater peace of mind and security.”

Continued Bin Tarraf, “Emirates Islamic is making deeper investments in digital technologies to enhance and improve the banking experience, as part of our commitment to support the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai in making Dubai the global capital of Islamic economy. We are confident that our efforts will be well received by our customers and partners.”

In the next phase of the Cheque Chain project, the bank will have each cheque leaf registered on the Bank’s block chain platform enabling it to validate the authenticity of the cheque at source.

Originally published on www.cpifinancial.net

Halal Sector Key Topic at International Economic Summit

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The ninth International Economic Summit between Russia and Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) member countries started on Friday in Kazan, Tatarstan, with the UAE represented by a senior delegation chaired by Dr Rashid bin Ahmed bin Fahad, Minister of State.

The summit, which concludes today, began with a session entitled ‘Halal Industry’, which addressed the growing international demand for halal products and services. In his speech, Dr Bin Fahad stated that the Islamic economic sector is among the fastest-developing sectors in the world and has become an integral part of the international economy, especially after the world financial crisis and the desire for safe investments and economic activities with the added value of social development, which are the foundations of the Islamic economic structure.

He clarified that the halal industry is one of the most important parts of this vital sector, as the international demand for halal products has witnessed rapid growth after reaching a value of more than $2.3 trillion in 2015, according to OIC reports. He added that the food and beverage industry has the largest share of this industry, dominating with 67 per cent of total trade in halal products with a value of $1.4 trillion. This number is expected to rise to around $1.6 trillion at the beginning of 2020.

He then highlighted the UAE’s leading experience in the field of the Islamic economy and the halal industry, while clarifying that the country has succeeded, under directives of its wise leadership, in establishing a healthy and integrated system for the Islamic economy.

He stated that the UAE has taken the lead by launching initiatives to promote qualitative developments in the Islamic economy, including the ‘Dubai: Capital of Islamic Economy’ initiative and establishing the Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre and many other major projects and programmes, which represent an engine for achieving international prosperity in this field.

He added that with regards to the halal industry, the country is proud of its initiatives, which are unique internationally, represented in the International Halal Accreditation Forum, which was launched last year as an independent non-government network that provides an international umbrella for the consistent application of unified mechanisms for standardising the specifications of halal products from the Standards and Metrology Institute for Islamic Countries, a subsidiary of the OIC.

Despite being recently formed, the forum included the participation of accreditation authorities from over 21 countries, which is expected to expand to more than 40 countries during the coming years, who contributed to facilitating international trade in halal products, elevating its industries, protecting its consumers from around the world and supporting and encouraging developing countries to establish developed systems of halal accreditation.

Dr Bin Fahad stressed that the increasing interest in the halal sector in the country comes from its strong connection with the field of industry and the trading of food products, considered the most attractive investments with a share of 31 per cent of overall industrial investments in the country, adding that the value of the UAE’s trade in food products in 2015 reached around $25.3 billion, and $18 billion in the first nine months of 2016.

He further added that the country has led the Arab world in the export of food products in 2015, with a percentage of close to 30 per cent of the total exports of Arab countries, and second place in imports with a percentage of 18 per cent. This gives a clear indication that the UAE is one of the most important regional destinations in the trading and investments in the halal food sector, opening wider fields of co-operation with various trading partners, especially in this important international event.

Originally published on http://www.khaleejtimes.com

FTZ Contributions to Islamic Economy to Reach $117bn

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The contribution of free trade zones to the Islamic economy globally is set to double to $117 billion by 2021, according to a recent report by researchers Salaam Gateway.

The UAE’s free trade zones are using advanced information management tools to drive the doubling of the global free trade zone GDP, said experts.

The UAE hosts four of the world’s top 10 free trade zone cities for the Islamic economy.

Industry-watchers agree the new Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone is showing global best practices in using digital transformation to support its more than 13,000 companies.

Andrew Calthorpe, CEO at the free trade zone consultancy Condo Protego, said: “Digital transformation is vital for UAE free trade zones to drive the country’s economic growth.”

“Using the latest information management solutions, trade zones can deliver digital services to boost the business competitiveness of small businesses,” he said.

In the UAE, Condo Protego has seen strong success on driving digital transformation for one of the region’s largest free trade zones. By replacing legacy infrastructure with automated software-defined and scale-out infrastructure, the free trade zone can publish its own business applications and move closer to cloud and mobile app delivery.

Calthorpe added: “Using cloud and mobility information management solutions, free trade zone businesses can gain a level playing field with large enterprises.”

“Businesses can incorporate faster and more easily, better manage sales and supply chain, and enhance their ability to better meet customer needs,” he added.

Among UAE free trade zones, Condo Protego is seeing strong demand for solutions such as Dell EMC hyper-converged infrastructure, and Dell EMC software-defined storage such as ScaleIO, ECS scale-out storage, and Isilon network attached storage, it stated. 

Originally published on www.tradearabia.com

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