islamic financial services offers significant potential for islamic finance to more effectively mobilise capital towards building social resilience. provision of funds and financial protection can be made more affordable and accessible to a wider community by integrating social finance instruments such as endowment ( waqf ), donation ( sadaqah ) and alms - giving ( zakat ). countries such as indonesia and turkey have successfully integrated social finance within the broader financial ecosystem. to date, islamic financial institutions in malaysia have raised almost usd9. 72 million ( rm40 million ) through waqf and sadaqah platforms to fund projects related to health care, education and entrepreneurship. social finance initiatives are implemented by leveraging on existing infrastructure, expertise and accountability mechanisms within the islamic financial sector. more than 10 different channels are available to enable collection and distribution of social finance funds including via digital means of payment. most recently, a pilot “ blended financing ” programme has been introduced to enable micro - entrepreneurs in the low income group generate more sustainable income from viable business activities. the provision of zakat funds as initial capital is complemented by affordable microfinancing arrangement for working capital and a customised training programme to enhance business productivity. participants of the programme also receive 12 months of business mentoring with impact - based monitoring implemented to monitor the effectiveness of the programme. the pandemic has been a test of resilience for nations around the world. this test also presents many opportunities for the global islamic finance community to accelerate the progress of sustainable and inclusive finance towards achieving shared prosperity, sustainability and inclusive growth. the launch of the two reports on islamic fintech and islamic finance for financial inclusions should be seen as a call for collective action – each one of us has a part to play in 3 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches creating a more sustainable and equitable financial system. i look forward to the discussion on this important topic over the course of today. on this note, i wish to thank the world bank group for this invitation and i wish all of you a productive week. 1 john hopkins university of medicine, coronavirus resource center ( data as at 29 september 2020 ). 2 the 2017 global findex database is the world ’ s most comprehensive data set on how adults in more than 140 economies access accounts, make payments, save, borrow and manage risks. 3 the global gap between richer and poorer account ownership has not narrowed since 2014. the simulations suggest conditions today would correspond to a steep and unprecedented decline in human development. with

abdul rasheed ghaffour : maximising islamic finance for inclusive growth - from crisis to opportunity opening remarks by mr abdul rasheed ghaffour, deputy governor of the central bank of malaysia ( bank negara malaysia ), at the ( virtual ) launch of the world bank islamic finance reports, 7 october 2020. * * * thank you for inviting me to speak at the launch of the world bank reports on islamic fintech and islamic finance for inclusion in malaysia. as countries continue to battle the coronavirus pandemic, the publication of these two important reports is a stark reminder that risk events such as the pandemic can significantly impact global growth and disproportionately affect those who are most vulnerable. the virus has claimed more than one million lives and infected more than 34 million people in more than 200 countries just within a span of nine months1. the world bank group estimated global economic activity to contract by 5. 2 % this year with a triple hit on health, education and income. this has serious ramifications to developments. the gathering today is therefore timely for us to exchange views and perspectives on concrete ways to build more equitable financial systems, and the specific role that islamic finance can play to catalyse inclusive economic recovery. covid - 19 has further exacerbated existing vulnerabilities over the past decade, the global financial community has seen commendable progress in advancing financial inclusion. the 2017 global findex database shows that 69 percent of adults have an account compared to 51 percent in 2011 2. yet, about 1. 7 billion adults remain unbanked with persistent inequality in account ownership between the rich and the poor3. in recent months, new and unprecedented challenges to sustainability and effectiveness of financial inclusion initiatives worldwide have surfaced. workers, especially in the informal sector and low income segment, have experienced sudden loss of employment and income. job replacement and reskilling programmes require time to complete before these workers are able to gain new employment opportunities. the limited employment prospects and labour mobility, especially for low - skilled, low income workers, may impede effective usage of financial services going forward. containment measures, while necessary to contain the spread of the virus, have also reduced accessibility to financial services. this is especially so in areas with poor digital connectivity, and among communities with low digital financial literacy. from a human development standpoint, a united nations development programme ’ s ( undp ) report estimated that the combined impact of income, health and