Scanning the Needs, Barriers, and Opportunities in Islamic Financing
Davao City – The Peace and Equity Foundation (PEF) and the UP Strategic Research and Management Foundation (UPSTREAM) signed a memorandum of agreement on April 4, 2024, at the UP Mindanao Gaisano Conference Room to undertake an action research study on Islamic financing in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.
The study, to be conducted by the UP Center for Integrative and Development Studies (UP CIDS) under its Escaping the Middle-Income Trap Chains-for-Change (EMIT C4C) program, will identify the needs, barriers, and opportunities related to Islamic financing, starting with PEF projects in the region.
Islamic finance or Shari’ah-compliant financing refers to instruments and services that abide by Islamic law. Its development will help promote financial inclusion and create solutions for Muslims residing in the Bangsamoro region, considered the country’s poorest region according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.
“PEF would like to look at the current landscape of Islamic financing and what can be our role in helping the poor through this instrument,” PEF Executive Director Roberto Calingo said.
In the past, PEF has supported social enterprises involved in Islamic financing and partnering with other advocates such as the Center for Agriculture and Rural Development – Mutually Reinforcing Institutions (CARD-MRI) and the Ramon Magsaysay Awards Foundation.
Calingo signed the MOA with UPSTREAM President Dr. Sylvia Concepcion and UP EMIT C4C Senior Research Analyst Jane Lynn Capacio.
Under the agreement, PEF and the EMIT C4C team will gather data, conduct discussions and deliberations, and write the report. UPSTREAM, meanwhile, will monitor the implementation of the action research project.
UP Center for Integrative and Development Studies is a policy research unit that connects disciplines and scholars across several units of the UP System.
UP Strategic Research and Management Foundation, a non-stock, non-profit organization in Davao City, is one of the two accredited foundations in UP Mindanao and supports the School of Management (SOM) with its funds and resources generated through grant projects, research, consultancies, and training services conducted by the SOM faculty.
Peace and Equity Foundation is a non-stock, non-profit organization that supports social development organizations and social enterprises to provide poor Filipino households with viable livelihoods and better access to basic services. PEF promotes initiatives that advance knowledge on critical issues, guiding PEF to chart directions and design interventions on the ground.