Changing World, New Relationships ? a Message from the Word Islamic Economic Forum in London

Changing World, New Relationships ? a Message from the Word Islamic Economic Forum in London



30 October 2013.

I am at the opening session of the 9th Word Islamic Economic Forum in the Excel conference centre London. Before me are 16 world leaders ? from HM King Abdullah II of Jordan, to Prime Minister Razak of Malaysia, to HE Dr Rowsch N Shaways, Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq and the British PM, David Cameron. All have spoken.

The tone of these addresses has made the reason for holding this Forum in London (as opposed to a centre within the Islamic world) clear ? this conference is about the desire for outward collaboration creating inward investment. Therefore as David Cameron reiterates in his speech, London is seen as the right hub to support this nation building, based the capital?s history of openness and a pioneering approach to global business. This is supported by the stated intent to be one of the top three Islamic finance centres in the world, supporting a new kind of global interdependence ? defined by a conjoined ?quality of growth? at its heart.
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The speeches made it clear that harmonising the power of globalisation is seen as a key driver of national growth, in Dr Shaways? view even serving to heal divisions that exist on a national level. However, to action this, national identity needs to translate into a puzzle piece that successfully answers global need. This requires full engagement of citizens, indeed as the IDB?s president put it, ? a thriving local human economy?, able to translate skills and ideas to serve local, global and national need. Leveraging access to technology was seen as a crucial factor, with nations needing to deliver the level of education required to take advantage of the opportunities it offers. The pursuit of knowledge as a key tenet of Islam was given as a particular driver of national education and skills building within the Muslim world.

HE Dr Rowsch N Shaways, Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq presented around the following key considerations:

Building external partnerships, able to drive a thriving private sector, would serve to heal inward rifts, with the EU being a great example of supportive economic co-operation driven by a common vision.
Technological advances, particularly communication, would support national development on a global stage. This would serve to create social equity, focussing on reducing extreme poverty.
Events, both internal and external, focussing on capacity building and interregional and global co-operation would be essential to Iraq?s prosperity moving forwards.

Iraq?s immediate need to combat terrorism and resolve the internal conflict puts it at the forefront of creating a lasting solution -with a stated intent of national identity being redefined within a global setting to heal divisions and thus support peace.

A reminder that Iraq?s economic growth was still in double digits, as opposed to the still sluggish performance of the global economy ? making Iraq an excellent investment opportunity despite its problems.
? A strong yes to the empowerment of Islamic women? ( comment: maybe that could be one the forces of co-operation Iraq could drive within the region?).

That evening HRH Price Charles spoke of taking the connecting ethical and spiritual principals of Islamic finance as guides for a world which is redefining approaches to economic growth. So, some tall orders ? blanket Women?s Economic Empowerment , the underlying principles of Islamic Finance integrated into general economic principles and indeed an interconnectedness and interdependence between nations that will drive not just external opportunity but internal harmony.

As the recent publication of the UN Global Compact update showed, vision and statements although nice, don?t necessarily result in action ? there is a big gap between what is said and what is done. Over the next couple of days leaders are making commitments, defining goals and setting policies. The follow through action must however be seen as equally important. To me the success or failure of this 9th WIEF will depend the quality of interaction between leaders and their willingness to collaborate. Otherwise we will have a nice series of sound bites around the importance of inward investment, without the action that will make this proposition truly attractive. If that is the case the visions shared will have dissipated by the time the last bag has been packed and the last plane has left.

The opening address and some of the speeches can be downloaded at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
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