Introduction to Islamic finance

An increasing number of individuals and banks have become curious about Islamic finance and how it is conducted in America. The author provides helpful background and tells where services can be found in New England.Finance (Islamic law)

Contractual Forms in Islamic Finance Law and Islamic Inv. Co. of the Gulf (Bahamas) Ltd. v. Symphony Gems N.V. & Ors.: A First Impression of Islamic Finance

This Article focuses on the case of Islamic Investment Company of the Gulf (Bahamas) Ltd. v. Symphony Gems N.V. & Others (“Symphony Gems”). Symphony Gems is the first instance where a Western court of law ruled on an Islamic financial transaction. Symphony Gems illuminates the challenges and tensions within the industrial complex of Islamic finance as it seeks to exist and thrive in a commercial reality where the regulatory framework and its associated assumptions (both theoretical as well as those of commercial practice) differ markedly from those of Islamic law and the contemporary Islamic financial industry. The resulting transactions often deviate from the classical modes or forms upon which they are supposed to be based. From a conventional finance perspective, Islamic transactions can be criticized as being anomalous, inefficiently structured and obliquely documented. Symphony Gems arose out of the applicability of an Islamic financial contract known as a murabahah. This Article will explain both the conceptual basis and the contemporary usage of the murabahah contract and, more generally, the challenges of integrating Islamic financial concepts into the Anglo-American legal system that predominates the modern global economy. Murabahah contracts, simply stated, involve the sale of an item, through a middleman, in which the ultimate buyer is aware of the middleman\u27s costs in obtaining the item. As discussed later in this Article, murabahah contracts in contemporary practice closely approximate conventional financing mechanisms, particularly the economics underlying a similarly-profiled conventional commercial financing. This is why murabahah contracts are so popular. Therefore, it is not surprising that the first instance in which a Western court of law has examined and opined upon an Islamic financial contract involves a murabahah sale

Sustaining the Multi-Functionality of the Zamfara Reserve in Semi-Arid Nigeria: What is the Role of Co-Management?

Unhealthy competition and conflicts among the diverse users (herders, farmers, fishermen, etc.) of the natural resources (pasture, water, land, etc.) in the Zamfara reserve, Nigeria have undermined the reserve\u27s capacity to serve its intended multi-functional roles. The reserve (3, 650 km2), which was established in 1919 with 4 enclave villages where farmers live and cultivate crops, was meant also to provide pasture and water for Fulani herdsmen. Vast numbers of people are, however, becoming landless or near landless in the reserve. Powerful non-local actors are forcing their way into the reserve area and are extracting resources with no respect to traditional customs and rules. Umar (2004), for example, has shown how politicians and traditional rulers, with the support of the Zamfara state government, have converted over 100 ha of common grazing land in the reserve to private farms. This paper offers a model for co-management of the shrinking natural resources in the reserve, which the paper assumes, may help in maintaining the reserve\u27s multi-functional nature. Co- management is a pluralist approach to managing natural resources, incorporating a variety of partners in a variety of roles, generally to the end goals of environmental conservation, sustainable use of natural resources and the equitable sharing of resource-related benefits and responsibilities (Viswanathan, undated)

Manajemen Penyakit Berbasis Wilayah

It is universally accepted that disease occurrence is the nucleus of public health problem and should be prevented to achieve healthy area and strong country. Disease occurrence is a phenomenon that is area-based and include ecosystem both spatial and temporal dimensions. This paper tries to explain the importance, meaning, location and method of area-based disease management. The important basic assumption is that the successful risk and disease control can increase ability to increase and maintain life quality of the people. Area-based development could be implemented by referring to MPBW concept and SKK design for each and every autonomous government. Furthermore, there is a need to develop MPBW guidelines in district level to be used by development designer and planner. It is expected that MPBW could improve community health in a district gradually and continuously. Last but not least, the implementation of MPBW should utilise Public Health sciences principles