the sme credit bureau also aims at promoting greater transparency, professionalism and sound credit culture among smes. smes can be assured that their good track records would be captured and evaluated by an independent third party, which in turn, would assist them to increase their financing and business opportunities. the credit reports would serve as a convenient tool for smes to carry out a self evaluation in identifying areas that needs improvement. this strategic alliance represents a meeting of the common objective of cgc and d & b to bridge the gaps in the availability and access to sme credit information in the country. the sme credit bureau is a big step towards a more sophisticated and transparent financing environment for smes in malaysia. both cgc, which is in the business of providing credit enhancement to malaysian smes ; and d & b, a global operator and provider of credit bureau services, are well equipped to drive this initiative forward. on this note, i would like to congratulate cgc and d & b malaysia sdn. bhd. in making this initiative possible. i am also confident that this will open up a new chapter in the history of credit bureaus and enable these entities to play an even greater role in the future development of the financial industry in malaysia.

to break away from a compliance - based mentality into an outcome - based worldview. the mental shift would position shariah scholars as not merely the leaders in shariah knowledge, but also as the catalyst for business innovations. it is in this spirit that bank negara malaysia is enhancing the shariah governance framework for islamic financial institutions. the new framework calls upon the shariah committees to integrate relevant business and risk considerations in shariah decisions. our aim is to position these committees as an enabler and catalyst in supporting the board and senior management. one that drives innovation by providing practical, actionable and impactful shariah advice. by capturing multifaceted challenges faced by the industry, this framework ensures an ongoing support to shariah advice amid the fast - changing business environment. second is the pursuit of lifelong learning. it is through the relentless quest for knowledge that the great scholars of the past have left a lasting impact on our world. this ought to be no different today. modern day shariah scholars, as with all of us here, must likewise continuously up - skill ourselves. after all, as the islamic finance industry grows and evolves, so will the complexity of shariah issues. a sound understanding of other domains – such as of accounting, law, economics and technology – is necessary to strengthen and bolster comprehensive and practical ijtihad. this pursuit of various spectrums of knowledge was the basis for the great achievements of islamic scholars in the past. it is hard to think of a scholar who was the master of only one discipline, be it ibn sina, ibn rushd or ibn khaldun. in fact, their mastery of knowledge crossed multiple subject matters, from theology to philosophy, mathematics and the sciences. with an expanded breadth of capabilities and knowledge, the shariah fraternity will be in a credible position to influence and shape the future direction of the industry. the recent launch of the certified shariah advisors ( csa ) and certified shariah practitioner ( csp ) programmes demonstrates our commitment towards shaping and nurturing high quality shariah talent locally and internationally. the professional certification programmes will raise the bar for the industry by elevating the professionalism of shariah advisors and upskilling competencies in the community. to support the noble initiative by the association of shariah advisors in islamic finance, and to further deepen talent capacity, bank negara malaysia will make the certification a pre - requisite