Doha, Qatar - December 25-27, 2011
CALL FOR PAPERS

The global economy continues to face the perennial problems of poverty, persistent youth unemployment, excessive inequalities of income and wealth, high levels of inflation, large macroeconomic and budgetary imbalances, exorbitant debt-servicing burdens, inadequate and aging public utilities and infrastructure, skyrocketing energy prices, and growing food insecurity. The reoccurring regional and global financial crises further intensify and magnify these problems particularly for the underprivileged segments of the world population. As a result, many countries are at the risk of failing to achieve the Millennium Development Goals set by the United Nations.
However, some countries also present optimistic experiences to share, and from which useful lessons can be drawn for shaping the future economic scene in other countries.

The Eighth International Conference on Islamic Economics and Finance is jointly being organized by the Qatar Foundation’s Faculty of Islamic Studies (QFIS) through its Islamic Economics and Finance Center, the Islamic Development Bank Group through its Islamic Research and Training Institute (IRTI), and the International Association for Islamic Economics with the support of other stakeholders. The Conference will provide a platform for dialogue and discussions between policymakers, academics, researchers, graduate students, and practitioners to address the problems of poverty alleviation, inclusive economic growth, and macroeconomic stability from the
perspective of the Islamic Economics and Finance discipline. The Conference will be held for three days during December 25 – 27, 2011 in Doha, Qatar.

Theoretical and empirical research papers are invited in Arabic and English languages for submission to the Conference in the following and related areas, subject to the conditions described in this announcement.

ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVES ON ECONOMICS AND DEVELOPMENT: IMPLICATIONS FOR REFORMS:

• Economic doctrines of Islam and their implications for inclusive economic growth, poverty reduction, sustainable development and economic stability.
• Faith, values, and economic development.
• History of Islamic economic thought and economic management.
• Comprehensive human development: its concepts, aspirations, strategies and policies in perspective of Maqasid al Shariah.
• Role of socio-economic institutions in economic development.
• Islamic critique of conventional development theories.
• Methodology of Islamic Economics, including critique of Islamic economics and finance.
• Role of Islamic principles in the Microeconomic institutions, exchange and market discipline.
• Effects of Islamic principles on the Macroeconomy and its management - fiscal, monetary and financial policies.
• Effects of Islamic principles on law, property rights, governance of public, private and voluntary sector institutions.
• Human capital development; education and training in Islamic Economics and Finance.

CRITIQUE ASSESMENT OF DIFFERENT MODELS AND POLCIES OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Case Studies Poverty Alleviation and Progress on MDGs

• Poverty, human development and progress on Millennium Development Goals (MDGs): Country case studies on economic development in Muslim countries and communities, including but not limited to: Egypt, Pakistan, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Turkey, Malaysia, Iran, Bangladesh, Syria, GCC, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Burkina Faso, Chad, Gambia, Mauritania, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
• Global and regional surveys of economic indicators and socio-economic dynamics in the OIC region as compared with the wider world; challenges of food insecurity and energy crisis, access to safe water, basic health facilities and education, education, inclusive growth and reform policies, the role of the non-profit sector (e.g. NGOs), economic growth and the environment, resource gap and mobilizing alternative forms of external resources.
• The OIC Makkah Declaration (December 2005): An assessment of prospects and progress, the state of trade, investment and economic cooperation in the OIC region; performance of regional groupings and economic cooperation organizations in the OIC region, responses to the new international economic order.
• The impact of and lessons from the global financial crisis.

Case studies on the Knowledge Economy and Entrepreneurship Development Nexus

• The need for entrepreneurship development with an emphasis on success stories.
• Female participation in entrepreneurship, professional fields and workforce in the OIC region and in the Islamic finance industry: its determinants, challenges, and current state.
• Knowledge economy and its relationship with inclusive economic development.
• Challenges of good governance, and its implications for sustainable economic growth.
• Assessment of the impact of globalization.
• Investment in human capital and the challenges of human capital flight (‘brain drain’).

Case Studies on Access to Financial Services and Inclusive Financial Sector Development

• The importance of access to finance and its present state.
• An assessment of inclusive financial sector development policies.
• Experiences with Islamic microfinance and the role of and Awqaf institutions.
• Performance measurement of Zakah and Awqaf in Muslim societies; Zakah and Awqaf funds, and their use in stimulating economic growth; establishing disclosure, transparency, and monitoring requirements of Zakah and Awqaf activities.

THE WAY OUT – TOWARDS PRACTICAL AND IMPLEMENTABLE ROAD MAPS
Parameters and Modalities for Policy Reforms

• Integrating comprehensive human development and poverty alleviation in economic and financial sector reforms.
• Developing the requisite institutions for sustainable development with fair distribution and poverty alleviation including and Awqaf.
• Islamic finance, Zakah, Awqaf and developing practical and implementable modalities for enhancing the access of micro, small and medium enterprises to financial services.
• Reforms of Macroeconomic management and governance.
• Reforming public sector resource mobilization and allocation based on genuine Islamic economics and finance principles.
• Reforming the legal and regulatory framework and infrastructure for financial markets and institutions.
• Comprehensive socio-economic policy reforms based on the Maqasid Al Shariah.

Enhancing the Resilience and Inclusiveness of Islamic Financial Markets and Institutions

• Enhancing the architecture and infrastructure for Islamic financial markets and institutions.
• Resilience of Islamic financial services industry and the role of internationally mandated institutions (The Islamic Development Bank, Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions, Islamic Financial Services Board, International Islamic Financial Markets, International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation).
• Impact of Basel III & G20 reform agenda, IFSB and AAOIFI Standards and its impact on Islamic financial services industry.
• Finance and governance in the post-crisis world, democracy and transparency in governance of Islamic finance – critique of the Western and IFSB/AAOIFI models of corporate and financial governance.
• The challenges of authenticity, financial product development, competition and sustainability.
• Enhancing the effectiveness of legal, regulatory and support infrastructure for Islamic finance.

Assessing the Development and Stability of Islamic Financial Services

• Critical assessment of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund’s Financial Sector Assessment Program.
• Developing templates for assessing the development and stability of Islamic financial services.
• Actual assessment of stability and development of Islamic financial industry in different countries.

DATES TO WATCH

Submission of abstracts with CVs April 15th
Decision of Academic Committee May 5th
Submission of First Draft of Papers July 15th
Decision of Academic Committee August 15th
Submission of Final Draft October 10th

TICKETS AND HOTEL

One author of each accepted paper will be paid by IRTI round-trip economy class air tickets, and hotel stay, including food during the conference.

STYLE FOR SUBMISSION

There is no submission fee. Outlines of papers should be e-mailed to the contacts provided at the end of this call, in MS-Word format along with CVs of authors. Outlines and papers will be subjected to the normal refereeing process.
Keeping in mind the norms in economics and finance discipline, papers are expected to be less than 35 pages, typed in single space on A4 size paper, with one inch of margin on all sides. The formatting style shall be as follows:
1. Text Font: Times New Roman, 12pt.
2. Section Headings: Times New Roman, 12pt. bold, uppercase centered.
3. Title of Paper: Font: Times New Roman, 14pt. bold, uppercase centered.
4. References: Harvard Style.

ACADEMIC CONTACTS:

Dr. Salman Syed Ali
Islamic Research and Training Institute
Islamic Development Bank
P.O. Box 9201, Jeddah 21432
Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Mr. Wijdan Tariq
Qatar Faculty of Islamic Studies
Islamic Economics and Finance Center
Qatar Foundation
P.O. Box 34110 Doha, Qatar
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

BACKGROUND OF CONFERENCE SERIES

The first conference in the series was held in Makkah Al Mukaramah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1976 under the auspices of King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah and it marked the start of development of Islamic economics and finance as modern scientific disciplines. The second conference was held in Islamabad, Pakistan, in 1983 under the auspices of the International Islamic University, Islamabad. The third conference was held in 1992 at the International Islamic University, Selangor, Malaysia. The fourth conference was held in 2000 at Loughborough University, Loughborough, U.K. The fifth conference was held in Bahrain under the auspices of Bahrain University, Bahrain in 2003. The sixth conference was held in 2005 in Jakarta under the auspices of the Indonesian Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank of Indonesia. The Seventh Conference was held in Jeddah under the auspices of King Abdulaziz University in 2008. For more information about previous conferences in this series, please visit: http://islamiccenter.kau.edu.sa/7iecon/index_english.html