Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) and the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance (BIBF) signed a cooperation agreement to commence an E-Learning platform project for the standards issued by AAOIFI. The agreement was signed by Secretary General Dr. Hamed Hassan Me-rah, of AAOIFI, and Deputy Director of BIBF, Dr. Ahmed Al Shaikh.

The platform is expected to enhance the currently offered courses and programs pertaining to Islamic Finance in an effort to align the Sharia and accounting standards with the governance standards and the related principles issued by AAOIFI to regulate the financial markets and Islamic financial institutes across the world. The e-learning platform incorporates AAOIFI’s standards into an educational and vocational content both in English and Arabic. The project is funded by Ibdar Bank according to the funding agreement signed by the Bank’s Acting CEO, Mr. Ahmed Al Rayes, and BIBF Deputy Director, Dr. Ahmed Al Shaikh.
In this respect, AAOIFI’s Secretary General Dr. Hamed Merah stated “We are glad to have launched this important initiative which we are confident will help lift up our standards of education and learning, to the benefit of the Islamic Finance sector, in particular and the broader community in general, ,”

Dr. Merah expressed his appreciation for Ibdar Bank as the project sponsor, and also extended his thanks to BIBF as the co-partner.

BIBF’s Deputy Director expressed his appreciation to this important step for devel-opment of human capital in the Islamic Finance industry. He said that the BIBF is a leader in the area of Islamic Banking and Finance training and education not only regionally, but also globally. Consequently, this agreement is very important as it addresses human resources requirements to support growth, based on sophisticated academic criteria and modern technology. Ultimately, it is expected to serve the BIBF’s strategic goal in terms of excellence and value-added education and training.

Ibdar Bank’s Acting CEO, Mr. Ahmed Al Rayes, also reaffirmed the importance of talent development and innovation in the Islamic Finance industry. He further ex-pressed his pleasure in the Bank’s support for this cooperation between AAOIFI and BIBF highlighting the importance of human resources’ capabilities in elevating the standards of excellence, which in turn guarantees the ongoing development and sustainability of the industry. Moreover, he added that it is essential for the Islamic Finance industry to keep up with the growing demand for its Islamic financial services and investments, where it is essential for market players, such as Ibdar Bank, to provide value and opportunity for growth to current and future investors.

The project is planned to be implemented in phases. The developmental phase be-gins immediately upon the signing of the agreement. Thereafter, the E-Learning platform will enable full offering of online courses as well as be integrated with the current traditional methods, offering what is known as Blended Learning. Within two years, the E-Learning platform project is expected to be fully completed.