The Abdulla Al Ghurair Foundation for Education purpose is to empower Emirati and Arab youth through education so that they can thrive and contribute to the development of the region. The foundation has created a Refugee Impact Fund which is focused on Georgia and Lebanon with a 3-year Mandate to support refugees. Now in its 4th year, the Fund has set aside $35m to support secondary education for refugees. The foundation works with the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) and focuses on providing food, education, and health for refugees. The aim is to move the children from learning to earning. The Foundation had a reference case of impact from a former Palestinian refugee who was earning over 3,500 euros working in France and had passed through the Foundation’s educational program. The Foundation works hard at choosing the right partner because a young, hungry person cannot learn.
Fajr Capital is a leading private equity investor in the Middle East and Southeast Asia focused on creating enduring value for shareholders. According to Iqbal Khan, Fajr Capital has created 10,000 new jobs during the past decade and had a realized return on investments of 20%. According to Iqbal, the firm operates with a philosophy of better ownerships and sees itself as the guardian of capital and companies that ultimately belong to millions of people, whose hopes and dreams rest on their shoulders.
Fajr Capital operates with the premise that the quality of governance and culture in the firm affects the quality of governance and culture in its investee companies. As such, without excellence in firm culture and governance, there will be no excellent outcomes from the investees or portfolio companies. According to Iqbal, one of Islam’s most important tenets is Zakat. Zakat requires adherents to voluntarily allocate at least 2.5% of wealth to charity over their lifetime. As a result, the firm is working with its partners and investors to institutionalize social responsibility and corporate philanthropy using the principles of Zakat. Zakat is both a spiritual duty and a vital part of the Islamic social welfare system. According to Iqbal, one does not have to be a billionaire to give Zakat.
Iqbal Khan describes how technology is increasingly being utilized to democratize philanthropy and wealth in the Muslim world. He highlighted how philanthropists in Egypt are feeding hungry school children through a school feeding program resulting in increased school enrolment. He described how one of the first impact bonds focused on prisoner’s integration in Peterborough, United Kingdom, ensuring that capital can and should do more than just appreciate in financial value. Iqbal Khan also described his role – through an umbrella organization for the UK Muslim community – to support the International Finance Facility for Immunization because of his personal conviction that the purpose would have the most impact on both Muslim and non-Muslim communities towards the eradication of polio. Afterwards, other Islamic administered institutions and funds also signed onto the bond.
Asked about lessons for Islamic finance from conventional finance, Mr. Iqbal highlighted the concept of “marifa” that encourages the exchange of knowledge and the need to bring together diverse cultures towards what he calls an “alliance of goodness” and explained how knowledge he gained working for HSBC has facilitated excellent management of Fajr Capital.
In conclusion, Iqbal Khan believes that the world is deep in deglobalization and developed, rich countries are experiencing significant economic and social volatility, which in turn will have a significant negative impact on the poor within and outside the rich economies. The war in Ukraine means that the world is feeding on 2021’s food crops (wheat), and climate change and continued conflict means that 2022 crops will be severely impacted causing famine and more hardship. In addition, Iqbal Khan believes that any Asset Manager (philanthropy, responsible investing, or conventional finance) must always ask himself/herself the following questions over the Investment lifecycle:
What did I achieve?
Did I do my best?
Did I spread a message of love and goodness?
