step towards realising the true value propositions of islamic finance. the future growth of islamic finance, in my view, is underpinned by three key areas. this could also lead us to defining the future of islamic finance as the ‘ new normal ’ that can bring greater sustainable and equitable economic development. first, is to have a more cohesive efforts by industry players across all sectors in islamic finance to realise its virtues that uphold social justice ; equality ; economic prosperity ; and inclusivity. indeed, these are challenging and daunting expectations. however, it is only through collaboration, that the islamic finance industry could push its growth trajectory, into the next level of maturity. working in silos should be replaced by promoting a culture of collaboration. industry players should not only play a proactive role to enhance collaboration within the industry, it should also be extended beyond sectoral boundaries. in the area of product development for example, collaboration within the banking group can be explored to offer a more comprehensive range of products and gain greater scale such as the offering of microfinancing and microtakaful as a composite product. moving forward, collaboration beyond traditional sectors ; and into competitive industries, such as retail, communication and oil and gas should be advanced as it opens up and extends our outreach to form new alliances. joining forces with other industries will allow us to embark on a faster learning curve, while equipping ourselves with new skill sets. this will enable the intended business objectives and outcomes to be met within a short period of time. a recent example of such collaboration between a few domestic islamic banks is the establishment of the investment account platform. the test of the collaboration however, lies in its strength and sustainability in pursuing the intended outcomes. at the regional level, there is also potential for industry players to collaborate through the islamic infrastructure investment platform or ( i3p ) that is now still at the proposal stage. through this regional dialogue platform, collaboration may be fostered between financial institutions, regulators and ministries from apec economies with multilateral institutions and academic experts to explore measures that can expand cross - border investments by islamic financial institutions. in particular, the potential for islamic pension funds and takaful to finance infrastructure projects in apec economies can be explored. in realising the virtues of islamic finance, it also warrants islamic banks to progressively strengthen its intermediary functions. i would like to encourage islamic banks to take on a more prominent and proactive role as investment intermediaries in addition to credit

, with intellectual diversity in other related disciplines such as economics, finance, law and financial technology can give rise to new visions and wisdoms that go beyond traditional boundaries. under the current scenario, talent development is crucial at every level of the organisation from the board to shariah committee members as well as front - liners. currently, an initiative is underway to develop a dedicated programme for board of islamic financial institutions with a scope that includes wide - ranging and unique issues within the islamic finance industry. the shariah leaders education programme that has commenced since last year has enriched more than 100 local shariah scholars with the necessary governance and business insights for them to effectively perform their roles as shariah committee members. given the success of this programme, an international flagship programme will soon be introduced to enhance business professionalism of shariah scholars worldwide, thus complementing their existing shariah expertise. conclusion in conclusion, the environment that we operate in will continue to be unpredictable with economic, social and political changes taking place in the global economy. for islamic finance, we have witnessed its increasing recognition and widespread appreciation. the future however requires greater impact by islamic finance to truly realise its potential in providing solutions to the problems faced by society. domestically, we are beyond half way of our financial sector blueprint. while certain targets have been met, more tangible outcomes are required from the industry to meet the targeted 40 % market share by 2020. of importance is the need for the industry to be driven by clear objectives and targets that leverage on the key growth areas that have been deliberated. “ reflect on existing strengths ; and build new capabilities to create new engines of growth within the industry. seize various growth opportunities. continuously reinvent, re - energise and re - anchor the industry ”. we can therefore successfully reap the immense dividends of the future. thank you. 4 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches