UAE: DIEDC finalizes plans for Islamic economy portal

The board of directors of the Dubai Islamic Economy Development Center (DIEDC) plans to launch a DIEDC logodigital Islamic economy portal, which is a first-of-its-kind initiative for the Islamic economy: the portal is being designed to serve as a global reference for the burgeoning Shariah-compliant economic sector; the center plans to develop the portal with Thomson Reuters.

Targeting institutional as well as retail users, the portal is conceptualized to include dedicated segments on finance, food, tourism, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, fashion, media/recreation, healthcare and education.

The portal will function to provide consumers, experts and investors with important information, data and statistics on Islamic economy while monitoring markets and growth updates in those sectors.

Mohammed Abdullah Al Gergawi, chairman of the board of DIEDC, said the portal will bolster Dubai’s position as a global knowledge capital.

“Dubai’s experience, knowledge and advanced technological infrastructure make the emirate a prime resource for establishing a path-breaking digital platform that generates content related to Islamic economy,” Al Gergawi said.

The board’s decision on the Islamic economy portal comes at the same time they set the agenda of the upcoming Global Islamic Economy Summit set to kick off in Dubai Oct. 5 and 6.

The summit will focus on the role of Islamic economy as a sovereign development tool and catalyst in achieving stability in the world economy. Participants will discuss the latest developments in Islamic economy and explore ways of leveraging them to incentivize the public and private sectors to implement Islamic finance tools.