Action-oriented leadership key to drive IFI's financial developments towards sustainability

Publish date: Wed, 14 Jul 2021, 09:15 PM
KUALA LUMPUR: Action-oriented leadership is a key element for leaders in the Islamic finance institutions (IFI) to drive financial developments towards sustainability, Bank Negara Malaysia assistant governor Adnan Zaylani Mohamaf Zahid said.
 
He said leaders must have the drive to cultivate a sustainability-focused culture within the organisation, lead innovation to deliver value-driven and impactful solutions as well as have a collaborative mindset to deliver holistic outcomes.
 
"It is our fervent hope that with sustainability, an innovative and collaborative mindset, we can come to develop value-driven solutions and discover new avenues for synergistic collaboration," he said in his opening remarks at the Sustainability Leadership Programme for Financial Institutions (FI) today.
 
Adnan Zaylani said the pandemic and climate crisis, while causing great upheavals, provided an impetus for industry leaders to reset and reprioritise resources to re-steer economies and financial systems to be more sustainable and inclusive, whereby Islamic finance (IF) has large potential in this space. 
 
He said the concept of vicegerency on earth in the Quran, which asserted mankind's responsibility to take ownership over preservation of wealth and resources on earth as well as the universal values of maqasid Shariah, resonated well with the principles of sustainability.
 
"As such, it is not surprising that Islamic financial institutions have stepped up to meet this challenge, evidenced through the value-based intermediation (VBI) initiative and practices by Islamic banks and takaful operators.
 
"Consequently, as sustainability becomes a global movement, IFIs are in a position and opportunity to take stewardship and influence financial developments, both within the financial groups, sector and the wider community," he said.
 
Adnan Zaylani said that outside the financial sector, FIs could embark on collaborations with organisations sharing similar sustainability aspirations including state religious authorities, waqf institutions, business industry associations and advocacy groups or non-governmental organisations who are at the heart of the vulnerable communities.
 
He said FIs could collaborate with government agencies and utility companies to support the consumers' shift to energy-efficient residential homes or vehicles.
 
He added that beyond the existing sustainable financial products offering preferential rates for the purchase of electric vehicles or green residential properties, more could be done to raise consumer awareness and to develop complementary infrastructure namely charging stations.
 
 - Bernama
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