Filter: africa
Much interest in Halal meeting
Thursday's meeting between the four Halal issuing authorities that is scheduled to take place in Lenasia starting at 12h30 has drawn much interest with both the National Consumer Forum (NCF) and Orion Cold Storage asking for the opportunity to attend the meeting. However, the National Independent Halal Authority (NIHT) who called for the meeting as a precursor to a National Meat Traders Summit in the New Year, maintained that it was critical for the four Halal bodies to sit down as a matter of urgency following the Halal relabeling scandal that rocked the country in November.
AFRICA: South African Muslims furious at 'Halal pork' scandal
South African Muslims have reacted with outrage to allegations that a leading meat importer labelled pork as Halal.The head of Cape Town-based Orion Cold Storage said he had received death threats since the allegation surfaced. He says he is the victim of a smear campaign by rival businesses. Muslim companies have obtained a court order banning Orion from using the Halal label, which means food has been prepared according to Islamic law.
AFRICA: Meat Supplier Denies Halal Pork Claims
A Muizenberg-based meat supplier which is alleged to have relabelled pork as Halal has vehemently denied this and all the other allegations levelled at it in the Western Cape High Court. Orion Cold Storage’s representatives have claimed in court papers that the source of the allegations attempted to blackmail one of its directors. The papers by Orion, formerly known as Airport Cold Storage, were filed on Thursday (10 November) in response to an interim interdict application lodged against the company by the SA Halaal Authority Trust (Sanha) and several authorities in the meat industry.
AFRICA: Frimax Foods
For the past 30 years, South African snack food manufacturer Frimax Foods has been using its local knowledge to provide innovative products to consumers across the country and beyond. Jane McCallion finds out the key to success for this family-run business. Frimax Foods is South Africa’s largest indigenous producer of potato and corn based snacks. Founded in Pietermaritzburg by three bothers in 1982, it is now owned and managed by founder Haroon Essa and his three sons, supplying both large supermarket chains and independent shops across the country. In 1997, it moved to Verulam, near Durban, in order to better service its clients nationwide. This dedication to service is Frimax’s trademark and has been recognised with a number of awards won throughout the years. Most recently, it was presented with a Certificate from the South African Food Safety Corporation for its commitment to food safety.
Filed Under: Products & Services
NIGERIA: Islamic finance spreads in Nigeria
Home to some 70 million Muslims, Nigeria is stepping up efforts to capitalise on the growing popularity of the one of the world’s fastest-growing financial sectors: Islamic banking. Earlier this year the Central Bank of Nigeria announced a final set of regulations which introduced Islamic banking to the country. CNN’s Christian Purefoy discussed the sector’s potential with Hajara Adeola, managing director of Lotus Capital, one of the groups helping to pave the way for Islamic finance in Nigeria. Adeola says there is a growing appetite for this form of banking. “It is working in Nigeria and there is a lot of interest in doing Islamic banking, in West Africa in particular,” she says. Spread across the Middle East and other parts of the world, a slew of Islamic financial institutions have been offering interest-free services that advocates say can provide a more sustainable alternative to conventional banking practices.
NIGERIA: ‘Non-interest banking, road to economic prosperity’
An Islamic cleric, Sheikh Temitope Mustapha, has made a strong case for Islamic banking, saying it is the best way of doing business as laid down by the Creator, even as he said that it is applicable to both Christianity and Islam. Speaking during the maiden edition of the Ramadan lecture organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Oyo State chapter, the cleric pointed out that a large percentage of Nigerians would benefit greatly if the non-interest banking was established “because a lot of industries and businesses set up will come up and many jobs will be created.” He urged Nigerians to accept non-interest banking in the interest of the nation, noting that the country should not be divided over such matter.
Filed Under: News Articles
NIGERIA: African Alliance Holds Seminar on Islamic Insurance
African Alliance Insurance PLC yesterday (14 August 2011) organized a one-day sensitization seminar on Takaful Islamic Insurance in Kano. The event attracted a cross-section of members of the society. In his welcome address, the Managing Director of African Alliance, Mr. Alphonse Okpor said the aim of the seminar was to dispel the long-held belief that insurance is unlawful in Islam.
Filed Under: News Articles
EGYPT: NBD offers new Shariah-compliant financing
Egypt’s National Bank for Development (NDB), in collaboration with Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB), launched a new Shariah-compliant service that can help customers finance their education or travels with up to LE 150,000 and LE 200,000, respectively. NDB launched Ijara Services, which hopes to cater to new clients who are in need of a wider range of Islamic finance products. The service, which is a lease contract, allows the bank to lease to a customer a specific service to “exist in the future,” like education or travel, for a certain period of time with a set number of regular instalments. Ijara can either be provided from the bank or a service provider like a school, university, or travel company through a signed parallel lease agreement.
NIGERIA: Still on the matter of Islamic banking
It is now clearly obvious that hardliners on both sides of the religious divide have dominated the debate on the introduction of Islamic banking and fouled the atmosphere of what ought to have been a trenchant national discourse with bigotry and incendiary verbiage. Perhaps, with the benefit of hindsight, we should not be surprised at the high note of bellicosity given the fragile nature of religious interrelationships in the country. This is chiefly why we posit that the matter of the introduction of Islamic banking should have been more professionally and ethically conducted by the financial regulatory authority, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Filed Under: News Articles