National and Global Islamic Financial Architecture:
Prolems and Possible Solutions for the OIC Member Countries
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Rating Agencies
Located in the Ivory Coast, the host of Bourse Regionale des Valeurs Mobileres, the West
African capital market, Bloomfield Investment Co is the only ratings agency in West Africa.
Their expertise does not cover Islamic Finance. The Islamic bank of Senegal owned by ICD
works closely with IDB’s rating agency named IIRA )
4.9.6. Consumer Protection Architecture
Consumer protection and financial literacy
WAEMU banking commission ensures the safety of the sector. Circular No. 5-CB/C/CB deals
with the governance applied to the financial institutions in WAEMU.
There is a set of legal organizations that protect consumers for the financial sector in parallel
with the laws protecting consumers. The Senegalese consumer association counts 28,000
members. It investigates and sues any organization that threatens the interests of the
customer. However, there are no specific organizations or orientations targeting the IFIs.
Similarly, there is a literacy scheme for conventional finance with no specifics for Islamic
finance.
Deposit Insurance
There are no deposit insurance schemes for Islamic finance institutions.
4.9.7. Human capital and knowledge development frameworks
The African Institute of Islamic Finance (AIIF-Advisory and Training), a private institution
founded in 2009, is the main institution providing Islamic finance training for professionals,
and it also provides certificates and an Executive MBA in Islamic Finance. The African Institute
of Islamic Finance has trained staff of the Islamic Bank of Senegal and close to 2,000
professionals in the financial sector including bankers, insurance company staff and
governments agents. The African Institute of Islamic Finance organized three Islamic Finance
Forums in the past in partnership with the Ministry of Finance, and it is is backed by the
government and the industry to extend its training capacity with Middle Eastern institutions
such the Bahrain Islamic Banking and financial institutions (BIBF) in the nearby countries.
However, a clearly defined policy to promote the African Institute of Islamic Finance training
initiatives is yet to be undertaken by the government to fill the IF expertise gap.
Recently, a few initiatives from Senegalese universities and business schools have emerged to
offer Master programs in Islamic Finance, but the lack of expertise and skillful trainers is a
major roadblock. The University of Paris Dauphine has partnered with a major regional
Business School in Dakar to develop an academy for Islamic finance in the near future.
4.9.8. Summary and Conclusions
The specific institutions related to the Islamic financial architecture in Senegal are still lacking.
Even though Senegalese authorities have shown the political will to drive the changes required
for that purpose, only meager changes in the legal environment have taken place to adapt to