‘ISLAMIC DIGITAL ECONOMY FRAMEWORK READY BY Q1’
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will introduce its first Islamic Digital Economy (IDE) framework to claim the leadership role in the global halal marketplace.
Through the IDE, Malaysia Digital Economy Corp (MDEC), Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia (Jakim) and Hall Amanie Sdn Bhd will be collaborating to create a unique and competitive advantage to accelerate the growth of Malaysia’s digital economy.
The comprehensive and holistic IDE framework is expected to be ready by the first quarter of next year and will cover areas such as halal and syariah compliance, funding and financing, Islamic digital economy regulation as well as the halal and syariah business operation frameworks.
“Malaysia’s leadership in Islamic finance and halal sectors puts it in a favourable position to win the Islamic digital marketplace.
“The development of a strong Islamic digital economy in Malaysia will create a unique and competitive advantage for the country to lead the regional and global Islamic digital marketplace,” said MDEC growth ecosystem development vicepresident Norhizam Kadir at a media briefing, here, yesterday.
Also present were Jakim halal hub director Datuk Dr Sirajuddin Suhaimee and Hall Amanie Sdn Bhd founder and group chairman Datuk Dr Mohd Daud Bakar.
The overall Islamic economy is expected to grow to US$3 trillion (RM12.2 trillion) by 2021.
Digital Economy continues to be a key growth driver, contributing 18.2 per cent to Malaysia’s GDP this year and is expected to exceed the projected target of 20 per cent by 2020.
Malaysia’s digital economy employment grew five per cent to 167,044 jobs last year and is expected to surpass the global average by 2025.
Norhizam said the framework would enable Malaysia’s Islamic digital economy to thrive under a more structured framework.
“Once launched, the framework will be able to guide startups and venture capital players in industries such as Islamic financing, tourism, pharmaceutical and others.
“Certification will be included in the framework as it would be needed to ensure syariah compliance and reliability on the Islamic products and services.
“We will be engaging with relevant stakeholders such as Bank Negara Malaysia, the Securities Commission and government agencies to propose on Islamic venture capital,” he said.
Malaysia ranks first overall in the Global Islamic Economy Indicator Score and in Islamic Finance, which looks at the current health and development of the Islamic Economy ecosystem.
Bank Negara’s statistics showed total assets of Malaysia’s Islamic banking system as at June had risen to RM610.52 billion from RM584.45 billion in January this year.