Our support continues through the work of the Taskforce on Islamic Finance and Global Financial Stability, jointly formed by the IFSB and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), whose recently completed work has led to the establishment of the Islamic Financial Stability Forum (IFSF), which is yet another important international platform for the regulators around the world to deliberate and collaborate on initiatives towards maintaining financial stability in the Islamic financial system. And last but not least, Malaysia has been at the forefront to support global growth and development of Islamic finance through capacity building endeavours, focusing on the two key areas of human capital development and catalysing greater harmonisation of Shariah interpretations. The availability of talents who are skilled in both the financial and Shariah fields have been essential in invigorating innovation and dynamism of Islamic finance in  2  BIS Review 102/2010  Malaysia. This is reflective of our long-held conviction that sustainable growth of Islamic finance could not be achieved without adequate attention to the development of intellectual resources. It is out of this conviction that Malaysia has committed resources to support the broadening horizon of growth in country and beyond, through the deepening of knowledge and competence among financial practitioners and Shariah scholars within the industry. For this purpose, Malaysia has established the International Centre of Education in Islamic finance (INCEIF) to support advanced education in Islamic finance, while, the International Shariah Research Academy (ISRA) was founded to promote research and rigorous intellectual dialogue among Shariah scholars and practitioners on Islamic finance.

This committee comprised members from among key government stakeholders, including the Attorney General’s Chambers as well as industry players and experienced Islamic finance legal practitioners. We are also pleased to announce the appointment of Tun Abdul Hamid bin Mohamad, the former Chief Justice who is also a member of our Shariah Advisory Council, to chair this committee. We will be engaging with the industry and general public for feedback on the laws which require harmonisation. Further details will be announced in due course. The underlying objective in having this Law Harmonisation Committee is to position and strengthen existing laws as the laws of choice for Islamic financial transactions. It is also consistent with our objectives to create an enabling environment that facilitates and accommodates the development of the industry, a clear and efficient system that preserves that enforceability of Islamic financial contracts and a credible and reliable forum for settlement of legal disputes arising from Islamic financial transactions. The support provided by the legal fraternity to Islamic finance has been instrumental to the progress of the industry. Crafting legislation to facilitate the growth and development of Islamic finance requires dedication and skill, and the ties that have since developed between lawyers, regulators, Shariah scholars and industry practitioners, have inevitably blossomed into a strong relationship based on mutual understanding and close co-operation. Going forward, it remains crucial for this close collaboration to continue so that more pioneering progress can be achieved in paving the way towards greater international integration and expansion of the Islamic finance industry.