Bernama Malaysia
Morocco is poised to have its first fully-fledged Islamic banking institution by October this year and is the only North African country rated investment grade seeking to tap the US$1.8 trillion industry.
In a statement today, the Finance Accreditation Agency (FAA) said it had the opportunity to work closely with the Moroccan government to introduce a sustainable framework, which includes building a pipeline of quality talent for the Islamic finance industry.
“Strong demand for Islamic finance products has prompted the Moroccan government to introduce new banking laws with provisions for establishing Shariah compliant banks,” it said.
On the sidelines of the International Participative Finance Forum Casablanca, which was attended by more than 400 high-level bankers and regulators from across the African region, FAA Chief Executive Officer Dr Amat Taap Manshor said it is important to build a strong talent pipeline to support Morocco’s future Islamic finance industry.
As Islamic finance is fairly new to the Moroccan market, it is important to have the necessary regulatory framework and institutional ecosystem besides strong learning initiatives to support human capital development, Amat Taap said.
FAA also said with more than 15 institutions having expressed interest in establishing Shariah compliant arms, the predominantly Muslim nation has invited key Malaysian institutions to help advise them on Islamic finance.
In addition, Morocco’s efforts to improve market liquidity and attract foreign investors has led to the creation of a Sharia board of Islamic scholars to oversee its young Islamic finance industry.
Morocco’s potential in Islamic finance may also present itself with opportunities to attract players from the Malaysian market to their shores, FAA said.
“By putting the right pieces into play at this early stage, the country will be in a strong position to grow into a resilient and robust Islamic finance hub for the African region,” it added.
The FAA is a quality assurance body dedicated to promoting high standards in the financial services industry through the application of internationally benchmarked learning standards and the accreditation of learning programmes targeted to elevate competencies among finance professionals.
— BERNAMA
