The Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) has formally recognized the two professional fellowships offered by the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Finance Institutions (AAOIFI) in its Fit and Proper criteria of the Training and Competency section of the Rulebook.

The two AAOIFI fellowships recognized by CBB include the ‘Certified Islamic Professional Accountant’ (CIPA) and the ‘Certified Shari’a Advisor and Auditor’ (CSAA), respectively.

By virtue of CBB’s recognition of AAOIFI fellowships, all Islamic finance professionals currently assuming or aspiring to assume identified ‘controlled functions’ (mentioned below) are mandated to acquire good knowledge and understanding of AAOIFI standards. Such core competency may be demonstrated by them through various related academic / professional qualifications and minimum years of experience, including CIPA and CSAA fellowships.

The positions / controlled functions for which the AAOIFI CIPA fellowship is recommended as part of the Fit and Proper criteria include: Chief Executive or General Manager and their deputies; Chief Financial Officer/ Head of Financial Control; Chief Risk Officer / Head of Risk Management; Head of Internal Audit; as well as Heads of other specialist functions. However, for the position of Chief Financial Officer / Head of Financial Control, the professional is mandated to be a CIPA fellow.

Similarly, AAOIFI CSAA fellowship has been recommended for the positions / controlled functions of Shari’a Officer and Head of Internal Shari’a Audit function, respectively.

Omar Mustafa Ansari, Secretary General, AAOIFI, said, “We are thankful to CBB for reposing such great trust and confidence in the quality of the two fellowships (CIPA and CSAA) and recognizing them in their Rulebook. Such an initiative will help boost the quality of the local talent especially in the implementation of AAOIFI standards. In that regard, I strongly encourage other regulators to follow suit and recognize CIPA and CSAA in their respective rulebooks as well.”

CIPA and CSAA programs were first launched in 2006 and is regarded as a benchmark in Islamic finance education designed and developed for those who aspire to master the AAOIFI Shari’a, Accounting, Auditing, Governance, and Ethics standards. There are not less than 1700 AAOIFI Fellows representing around 40 countries / jurisdictions and working at challenging and responsible positions. Recently, an ‘AAOIFI Education Board’ was also set up of which three meetings have taken place to direct and supervise all capacity building programs and activities of AAOIFI.

CBB Rulebook is accessible from here:

https://cbb.complinet.com/cbb/display/display.html?rbid=1821&element_id=8519