Q&A with Amanie's Maya Marissa Malek: ‘When it comes to Islamic finance, women are clearly and woefully under-represented’

This Q&A is with Maya Marissa Malek, Executive Director, Global Shariah Advisory, and CEO of Amanie Advisors Global Office. It is part of Salaam Gateway’s International Women's Day 2020 series that is co-designed and curated by Nyra Mahmood, MD of UK-based Simply Sharia Human Capital (SSHC LTD), the publishers of the 2016 report "Women in Islamic Finance & Islamic Economy”.

           
Salaam Gateway: Shariah scholars in the Islamic finance industry are one of the key gatekeepers that have a direct impact on the contracts, practices, transactions and deals in the $2 trillion+ industry. Is it accurate to say that an overwhelming minority of Shariah scholars that sit on Shariah Supervisory Boards either at company, national or industry infrastructure body level (e.g. AAOIFI) in the Islamic finance industry are women? Based on your experience and observation, or any available supporting data, what percentage of these scholars are women?

Maya Marissa Malek: Shariah scholars are not just gatekeepers but also the backbone of the Islamic finance industry. As Islamic finance journeys for a greater good and evolves into a more sophisticated industry, it is imperative that the spirit and the essence of Shariah are well guarded and are not compromised along the way. One major role of the Shariah scholars as experts in Shariah knowledge, is to ensure this remains intact throughout, more so as Islamic finance does not exist in an ideal ecosystem, at the moment.