Experts discuss best ways to manage endowment investments

Dubai: The less the government enforces its presence in endowment investments, the better it operates, said a senior official at the three-day Dubai International Conference on Endowments' Investments, organised by the Awkaf and Minors Affairs Foundation last week.

Speakers from across the world discussed the challenges and ways to strategically operate and manage endowment investments within the framework of the Sharia.

With a general consensus that endowment investments need more awareness and support, experts at the conference felt there is a need for more market involvement and a shift in overall management of such investments.

The participating consultants also believed that endowment investments should comply with Islamic laws.

In his speech on 'Corporate Management of Awqaf Management', Dr Monzir Kahf, economic consultant in the US and a lecturer on Islamic banking, finance, and economics, stressed that government involvement and governance of awkaf investments is an unfortunate practice that only began in the last century.

He added that "in the past, rich people used to initiate awkaf so as to avoid the control of the government over their properties."

According to Abdul Rahman Al Sharid, Secretary General of the Awkaf and Minors' Affairs Foundation the aim of the conference is to find an investment strategic plan, the possibility of enlarging the idea of monetary awkaf investment and try to establish a communication network among other things.

"Although the foundation manages 36 real estate projects at an overall value of Dh2 billion, financial account increased by 260 per cent within 30 months... and doubled the annual profit assigned to awkaf and to real state," he said.

Dr. Khalid Hussain, Economics Affairs Officer at the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia advocated Awkaf investments by financing medium and small projects as "small and medium size enterprises (SME) is the engine of the economy."

During his speech, Hussain presented the advantage of SMEs adding that 50 per cent of the labour force in the US and 81.4 per cent in Japan being absorbed by these enterprises. UAE has a percentage of 62 per cent, which is the highest among the GCC countries.