IESTAC discussed Integrated Islamic Finance in Universitas Airlangga

November 11, 2017, oleh: superadmin


Surabaya—Since its establishment 25 years ago, Islamic banking sector has been of concern to the scholars, practitioners, and monetary authority, investigating in depth about every aspect of Islamic banking ranging from its efficiency, stability from internal and external shocks to its contribution to financial system as a whole. Nonetheless, the studies on this issue seem to be focusing only on commercial side instead of its social counterpart. Against that backdrop, Islamic Economics Students Association which is often abbreviated as IESTAC conducted a guest lecture in Universitas Airlangga (UNAIR) Surabaya. This agenda was held on 9 November 2017, as a part of Students Mobility Programme activities.
Fikri Maududi, the President of IESTAC, said that the guest lecture was intended to enrich the students understanding through visiting the university or institutions in which the student can learn about what has not been thought in the class. He added, saying:” As Islamic economics students, we have to comprehensively understand about Islamic finance as a whole. If focusing only on the Islamic banks, commercial side of Islamic finance, we therefore tend to have denied that it has social aspect such as zakah, infaq, shadaqah and waqf. In fact, both sides of Islamic finance cannot be separated.”
“This agenda was held in collaboration with Department of Islamic Economics, Universitas Airlangga since that university has an Islamic economics program for undergraduate degree—besides postgraduate and doctoral degree—which is the same as IPIEF UMY. Thus, it is crucial nowadays to address the issue of Islamic social finance not only to foster a warm discussion between both universities but also to encourage students to do the research on this theme which has rarely been discussed”, said Susilo Nur Aji Cokro Darsono, M.RDM, lecturer of IPIEF UMY when interviewed on (10/11).
This discussion was divided into two sessions: the first session was about Baitul Māl wa at-tamwīl (BMT) that can combine both Islamic commercial and social aspect into one system. In doing so, however, BMT has to cope with several challenges either from internal or external factors that may likely to hamper the development of BMT itself. Supporting the role of BMT, Dr. Raditya Sukmana, the Director of Postgraduate program of Islamic Economics in Universitas Airlangga, emphasized in second session the important role of waqf as an instrument of Islamic social finance. He stressed that waqf can take many forms of instruments, not only land, building, or even mosque, as the vast majority of muslims still believes, but also cash waqf, corporate waqf etc. Accordingly, as an instrument of Islamic finance, waqf instrument can be widened. [Aw]