Sanha to host 4th halal conference

The South African National Halaal Authority (Sanha) is set to host its
4th International Halaal Conference in Johannesburg next month. The
event which is once again running concurrently with the Africa Big
Seven Exhibition at Gallagher Estate is themed ‘Serving the Winning
Choice,’ and will see various halaal role players from around the world
converging to explore the untapped opportunities for Africa and beyond.

‘We have been asked on numerous occasions on whether it would be
possible to take this event to other parts of the country or perhaps
even host smaller workshops. We have not yet reached those
levels, therefore we opted to stay with this winning formula by hosting
another conference, which will take place on Monday 20th July 2009 from
8am until 5pm,’ spokesperson Ebie Lockhat told VOC News this week.

In their previous forums, he explained, Sanha aimed at making the
halaal market more accessible to the broader community with past themes
such as ‘Opening a window to Halaal’ and ‘Halaal beyond Boundaries.’ He
also hinted that the halaal market is a buoyant one, an idea which will
be explored in more detailed during the conference.

‘Whether we are in an economic slump or not, 1.2 billion Muslims on
this planet need to eat halaal by their religious code. It is – after
our basic pillars of Islam – one of the most important aspects of our
religious life. Added to this equation, besides the consumer market,
Muslims can only sell what is halaal.

‘According to the most recent stats available, as released by the
World Halaal Forum at their conference held in Malaysia last month,
the global halaal industry is estimated to be worth US $600
billion, communities need it [halaal]; countries need it, so come to out
conference so that we can help you serve up the winning choice,’
Lockhat said.

A range of topics will be discussed at this year’s conference which
will include halaal certification programmes, Islamic Finance 2010 and
the influx of halaal consumers. Lockhat explains: ‘We have always
picked a broad spectrum of topics which will interest a broad spectrum
of people. President of the American Halaal Foundation, Dr Mohammed
Mazhar Hoosaini will be delivering a paper ‘Understanding Islamic
Dietary Concept.’

‘Dr Naushaad Emambux, who is an expert food industry scientist, will
look at ‘Science and technology – Natural Allies to halaal.’ Sanha’s
theological director Moulana Saeed Navlakhi will give conference
delegates some insight into what makes the halaal body tick with his
paper ‘From prayer to player.’ The role of the media as a watchdog will
also be investigated by Moulana S Rawat.’

Registration for the conference – which costs R1,500 – is now open to
all interested parties and forms can be downloaded from Sanha’s website
on www.sanha.org.za. For further details, contact the Halaal Authority
on their national helpline number 0861 786 111. VOC (Shanaaz
Ebrahim)