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Jury panel met and finalised the list of winners for the high-profile award presentation ceremony in Dubai on January 14
Al Ghurair: The award bears the mark of Dubai and the emirate's constructive contribution to the development of the global Islamic economy sector
Al Qemzi: The Award recognises the extraordinary contributions of individuals and businesses towards the success of Islamic economy
Dubai, UAE: The Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre (DIEDC), Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Thomson Reuters, finalised their preparations for the 2nd Islamic Economy Awards ceremony to be held at the Ritz-Carlton DIFC on January 14.
The independent jury panel, headed by H.E. Hussein Qemzi, Member of the DIEDC Board and Chairman of Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation, which comprises of local and international experts in the field of Islamic economy, finalised the winners of the eight categories of the annual award in addition to the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Initiated by the Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre (DIEDC) and organised by Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Thomson Reuters, the 2nd Islamic Economy Awards will be held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, and in line with the directive of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council.
The annual award seeks to recognise innovative world-class business initiatives and ideas that are sharia-compliant and contribute to the social and economic welfare of the Muslim population.
The jury panel consists of Khalid Al-Aboodi, CEO, Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector, Islamic Development Bank Group - Saudi Arabia, Andreas Schotter Ph.D., Professor of Global Strategy, Ivey Business School - Canada, Prof Dr. Mohammed Azmi Omar, Director General, Islamic Research and Training Institute, Islamic Development Bank Group - Malaysia.
The panel also includes Tayeb Abdulrahman Al Rais, Secretary General, Awqaf & Minors Affairs Foundation - UAE, Dr. Fatih Mehmet Gul, Founder and Executive Director, CSR Middle East - Turkey, Shelina Janmohamed, Vice President, Ogilvy Noor - UK, Dr. Tariqullah Khan, Professor of Islamic Finance, Hamad bin Khalifa University - Qatar, and Fareed Lutfi, Secretary General - Emirates Insurance Association & Gulf Insurance Federation - UAE.
H.E. Abdul Rahman Saif Al Ghurair, Chairman, Dubai Chamber, Member of the Board of Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre, stated that the award bears the mark of Dubai and the emirate's constructive contribution to the development of the global Islamic economy sector. He added that the award's eight vibrant categories not only cover a wide spectrum of the sector but also strengthen the status of the award in honouring creative people in the sector.
H.E. Al Ghurair lauded the competence and experience of the judging panel which he said comprises of experts in the field who will add value to the award's objective of recognising innovative world-class business initiatives and ideas.
"They will surely select the best individual and organisational performers thus driving further innovation and development in the Islamic Economy sector while also positively influencing this fast-growing sector," he said.
H.E. Hussain Al Qemzi, Chairman of the Panel of Jury of the 2nd Islamic Economy Award, Member of the DIEDC Board, and Chairman of Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation, said: "The Islamic Economy Award provides a unique platform that recognises the extraordinary contributions being made every day by individuals and their businesses towards the success of Islamic economy that has evolved into a distinct ecosystem of its own. With a potential value of more than US$8 trillion in GDP, Islamic economy is considered a global economic force to be reckoned with, whose appeal cuts across people of diverse religions, ethnicities and nationalities.
"The Award shows the commitment of our leaders towards the global development of the Islamic economy and their untiring efforts to harness the sector's significant potential. Such efforts will steer Dubai on course to achieve its ambition of becoming the global capital of Islamic economy.
He added, "We are encouraged to see the diversity of businesses and sectors that are competing for this year's award across its wide categories and the significant contribution each makes to the Islamic economy, both locally and globally. It is indeed an honour and a challenge to head the jury in evaluating the most exciting and creative businesses in the Islamic economy space."
Nadim Najjar, Managing Director, Middle East and North Africa, Thomson Reuters, said: "We are very proud of the prestigious judging panel invited to adjudicate the Islamic Economy Award. The panel was independently selected based on the judges' expertise across the diversity of award categories and the geographic distribution of the nominees."
Fareed Lutfi, Member of the Jury, said: "This award is unique due to its niche which endeavours benchmarking and advances credibility, besides saluting excellence in Islamic standards emanating from an experienced platform to benefit Islamic finance and Islamic business environment globally while creating opportunities to better meet Muslim-specific client needs backed up by Islamic core values.''
Established in 2013, this latest cycle of the award has witnessed a strong participation from international and local companies interested in enhancing bilateral trade and investment relations between Islamic nations while forging closer economic ties with the rest of the world towards fostering prosperity, harmony and well-being for all.
The eight award categories are: Money and Finance, Food & Health, Media; Hospitality and Tourism, Waqf and Endowments, SME Development, Islamic Economy Knowledge and Islamic Arts.
About Dubai Chamber:
Established in 1965, the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry is a non-profit public entity, whose mission is to represent, support and protect the interests of the business community in Dubai by creating a favorable business environment, supporting the development of business, and by promoting Dubai as an international business hub. For more information visit www.dubaichamber.com
About Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre
'Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre (DIEDC) was established in December 2013 to transform Dubai into the 'Capital of Islamic Economy', as envisioned by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, supervises the efforts of the DIEDC and its Board to bolster Dubai's bid to become a global hub for the Islamic Economy, encompassing a wide array of sectors through harnessing the projected US$6.7 trillion Islamic economy market.
DIEDC is equipped with the financial, administrative and legal tools to promote economic activities compatible with Islamic law in Dubai's goods and financial services sector, as well as the non-financial sector. In this capacity, it will conduct research and specialist studies to determine the contribution of sharia-compliant activities to the emirate's gross domestic product, and explore how to extend this contribution to boost the economy. DIEDC is also mandated to create new products and lines of service to law firms specializing in finance structuring.
About Thomson Reuters
Thomson Reuters is the world's leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals. We combine industry expertise with innovative technology to deliver critical information to leading decision makers in the financial and risk, legal, tax and accounting, intellectual property and science and media markets, powered by the world's most trusted news organization. For more information, go to www.thomsonreuters.com.
For more information please call:
Mohamad Mouzehem
Dubai Chamber
Tel: +971 4 2028537
Email: Mohamad.Mouzehem@Dubaichamber.com
Ghada El Khoury
APCO Worldwide
Tel: +971 4 375 5247
Mob: +971 55 804 5317
gelkhoury@apcoworldwide.com
Tarek Fleihan
Head, Corporate Communications & Public Relations
Middle East, Africa & Russia / CIS, Thomson Reuters
Mobile: +97144536527
Email: tarek.fleihan@thomsonreuters.com
© Press Release 2015
