São Paulo – The Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry will hold the first Global Islamic Economy Summit on November 25th and 26th this year. Held in partnership with Thomson Reuters, the event is a bid to meet the directives set forth last January by Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, vice president and prime minister of the United Arab Emirates, and ruler of Dubai, which he intends to make into the global capital of Islamic economy.<\/p>\n
The event will bring together leaders from around the world to discuss the future of a market worth an estimated US$ 4 trillion. The summit will address the six pillars of Islamic economy: Islamic finance, halal foods, halal lifestyle, halal travel, small and medium business development, and the infrastructure of halal economy.<\/p>\n
The summit will also see the launch of pioneering market studies on the subject, and announcements of new measures designed to make Dubai into the capital of Islamic economy. “As part of the ‘Dubai: Capital of Islamic Economy’ initiative, the Global Islamic Economy Summit 2013 offers that one point of focus highlighting a world of opportunities in the Islamic economy. And there’s no better place to do it than Dubai, the geographic and economic nexus of the Islamic world and a melting pot of citizens from hundreds of countries and dozens of cultures,” said Mohammed Abdullah Gergawi, minister of Cabinet Affairs of the United Arab Emirates, in a press released disclosed by the Dubai Chamber.<\/p>\n
“As a growing global business and leisure destination, Dubai is an ideal choice to become the capital of the Islamic economy. The UAE is already one of the biggest markets in the region for Islamic banking and we see major opportunities to enhance the halal food industry, develop trade policies and commercial laws, and Islamic tourism among other sectors. The Global Islamic Economy Summit will be the ideal platform to explore these ideas and begin a constructive dialogue for future growth and development,” said Abdul Rahman Saif Al Ghurair, the Dubai Chamber chairman, according to the same press release.<\/p>\n
To Sayd Farook, the global head of Islamic Capital Markets for Thomson Reuters, “In the current global economic climate, the search for new underserved markets has brought a fresh spotlight onto the Muslim world, and especially with regard to Islamic Finance and the Halal food and services sectors. The convergence of these two Shariah (Islamic law) compliant industries is likely to be a new engine of growth that engages both the Muslim and non-Muslim world,” he said.<\/p>\n
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum<\/strong><\/p>\n