Jakarta (ANTARA) - Former vice president Ma’ruf Amin has announced that the government is planning to transform the National Committee for Islamic Economy and Finance (KNEKS) into a new institution called the Islamic Economy Agency (BES).

“God willing, the national committee will soon be rebranded as the Islamic Economy Agency. I have spoken with Mr. President (Prabowo Subianto) to fast-track this process,” the 13th Indonesian president said at the launch of the 2024–2025 State of Global Islamic Economy (SGIE) Report in Jakarta on Tuesday.

He expressed confidence that the emergence of the BES would help the government drive innovation in policymaking and boost cross-sectoral coordination for the development of the Islamic, or sharia, economy in Indonesia.

He then called on all stakeholders, including industries, associations, academicians, and community organizations, to align steps to stimulate the growth of the Islamic economy in the country.

“This country has many entities focusing on the Islamic economy, such as the Sharia Economy Society (MES) and the Indonesian Association of Islamic Economy Experts (IAEI),” Amin pointed out.

Furthermore, he said that Bank Indonesia and the Ministry of Finance have work units dedicated to governing sharia economic affairs.

“It is the BES that will be tasked with orchestrating all these entities,” he informed.

Justifying this move, Amin highlighted that the BES will have a wide area of coverage, considering that the KNEKS has established regional offices in 33 provinces across Indonesia, including in North Sulawesi, despite Muslims being a minority group.

He then reiterated the importance of all stakeholders working together to promote the Islamic economy, ensuring that it makes greater contributions to the national economy amid an increasingly complex global economic landscape.

“Let us all move forward with optimism to present the best to Indonesia and the world,” he added.



Translator: M. Baqir, Tegar Nurfitra
Editor: Aditya Eko Sigit Wicaksono
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