Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) and the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), represented by the Islamic Development Bank Institute (IsDBI), successfully held the 18^th AAOIFI-IsDB Annual Islamic Banking and Finance Conference at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The conference’s theme was “Strategies for Impending Economic Slowdown and a Post-Oil World: Through Economic Diversification and Leveraging Islamic Finance”. The two-day conference was organised under the auspices of the Central Bank of Bahrain on 29-30 November 2023.

The conference attracted more than 770 delegates from over 35 countries, with an equivalent number of participants engaging in the proceedings virtually. Among the physical participants included representatives of 23 regulatory and supervisory authorities such as Bank of Russia, Reserve Bank of South Africa, Insurance Regulatory Authority of Uganda, Capital Market Authority of Saudi Arabia, Qatar Financial Centre Regulatory Authority (QFCRA), Maldives Monetary Authority and National Bank of Tajikistan.

The conference proceedings spanned seven sessions and featured 38 speakers, including keynote addresses. The opening ceremony was graced by keynote speeches from H.E. Shaikh Ebrahim Bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Chairman, AAOIFI Board of Trustees; H.E. Mr. Ahmed bin Ahmed Ghaleb Al-Maabqi, Governor, Central Bank of Yemen; H.E. Dr. Wassim Manssouri, Acting Governor, Banque Du Liban; H.E. Mr. Lamido Yuguda, Director General, Securities and Exchange Commission of Nigeria; and Dr. Sami Al-Suwailem, Acting Director General, Islamic Development Bank Institute (IsDBI).

H.E. Shaikh Ebrahim Bin Khalifa Al Khalifa presented insights into building resilient economies, robust financial system, protecting the environment and fostering inclusive and prosperous societies by leveraging the objectives, values, principles and rules of Islamic sustainable finance.

The speakers included industry experts, Shari’ah scholars, regulators, policymakers, bankers, international services providers, among others. They deliberated a range of pertinent topics such as the role of Islamic finance and Islamic fintech in diversifying the economic activity in the Muslim-majority countries, the opportunities and challenges presented by high benchmark rates for Islamic finance and the application of Islamic finance in infrastructure development for combatting climate change. In addition, there were special sessions devoted to emerging Islamic finance issues and AAOIFI standards, such as those concerning the investment accounts of Islamic financial institutions, the Shari’ah compliance and governance challenges confronting Sukuk and hyperinflation accounting for Islamic finance.

AAOIFI signed memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with a number of central banks and Islamic finance stakeholders, including with Central Bank of Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Central Bank of Lebanon, Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan, Central Bank of Yemen, Indonesian Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Institute of Banking Studies – Central Bank of Iraq, Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance and Microfinance Investment Support Facility for Afghanistan. Furthermore, AAOIFI signed membership, capacity building and AAOIFI affiliate university agreements with various institutions from different parts of the world.

Additionally, the conference also saw the graduation ceremony of fellows who passed AAOIFI professional qualifications, Certified Islamic Professional Accountant (CIPA) and Certified Islamic Shari’ah Advisor and Auditor (CSAA), over the course of previous year. Global Islamic Finance Report (GIFR) 2023 by Cambridge Institute of Islamic Finance, United Kingdom; Islamic Finance Development Report (IFDI) by London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG); and Islamic Financial System: Principles and Operations (3^rd edition) and Islamic Capital Market: Principles and Practices (2^nd edition) by INCEIF-ISRA, were also launched in the conference.

The Central Bank of Bahrain supported the conference. Major partners included Kuwait Finance House (KFH), Jumhouria Bank from Libya and Saudi National Bank (SNB). The gold partners included Khaleeji Commercial Bank, Al Baraka Banking Group, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB), Bahrain Islamic Bank (BiSB) and Al Salam Bank. Silver partners included DDCAP Group, EiGER and Fitch Ratings. Azentio was the technology partner.

On this occasion, H.E. Shaikh Ebrahim Bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, the Chairman of AAOIFI Board of Trustees said “I would like to extend my thanks and appreciation to the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and the Central Bank of Bahrain, as well as, to all partners, sponsors, media, and honourable guests from the central banks and the industry for their participation in the success of this conference, especially to those who have come from different parts of the world”. His Excellency added, “We are also pleased to sign agreements with a number of important institutions and look forward to working with them in future”.

Furthermore, AAOIFI organised the five-day “Capacity Building Week” in conjunction with the AAOIFI-IsDB 18^th Annual Islamic Banking and Finance Conference and in collaboration with the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance, from 28 November 2023 till 4 December 2023. A total of 23 workshops, delivered in Arabic, English and Russian languages, were conducted during the capacity building week. Over 30 lead and support trainers conducted these workshops. The workshops were attended both in-person and virtually by over 300 trainees.