Central
to the Arab spring has been the dire economic straits the Muslim world finds
itself in. Mohamed Bouazizi's self-immolation which was the catalyst to the
resultant mass demonstrations that engulfed the Muslim world was due in part to
the economic situation in Tunisia, which is common across the Muslim world. It
beggars belief how a region which possesses the world's largest oil and gas
fields, the world's largest Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWF) and has annual
revenues of £500 billion can ever have economic problems.
Unemployment,
poverty, soaring food prices, economic insecurity and corruption have all
become the norm as many have attempted to make ends meet when the system
constructed by the colonial West works against them.
With
this in mind, we present an outline of a few polices that a future Khilafah may
pursue based on the Islamic economic system and on the current economic
realities of the Muslim lands.
§ The
Khilafah will focus on job creation
Much of the Muslim
world requires huge investment in construction of infrastructure and heavy
industry. Such a policy will create millions of jobs and deal with the
unemployment situation in the region. It will also move people out of poverty
and allow the region to make use of its disposable income, further stimulating
the economy
§ Create
public works projects such as motorways, bridges and infrastructure development
programmes which will not just help communities but create jobs
Incentivise private
companies with contracts which require labour
§ The
Khilafah will pursue industrialization
Expansion of defence
industry. This would act as deterrent and lead to innovation of technologies
Share technological
expertise between Muslims regions as each country is at different stages in
defence development
Develop high tech
weapons
§ The
regions countries need to take control of its raw materials and expand its
mineral processing infrastructure.
Expand and construct
steel and iron mills, refineries, automobile industries and Chemical and
petrochemical industries.
A nuclear programme
should also be started to act as a deterrent to those who have designs on the
Muslims lands
§ The
Khilafah will use all proceeds from public assets such as oil and gas for the
interests of the Ummah (citizens) to focus on job creation and pursue industrialization
§ The
region should aim to achieve near self-sufficiency in agricultural production.
Grains like wheat,
rice, maize, and oilseed provide the basic ingredients for a vast variety of
food production. In contrast to current farming methods, the role of the state
should be to promote competitive food, farming and fisheries industries. This will
promote a thriving rural economy supported by Government funds from the
Khilafah to help poor farmers.
§ Through
the removal of Western rules and application of Islam's economic rules
sustainable economic growth can be achieved
Taxation policy which
is based on wealth rather than income will give citizens more disposable income
which can be spent in the economy.
Islam does not have
complex rules for taxation and has only seven revenue sources for the state, in
this way the rules for taxation are much simpler, cheaper to administer
The removal of
interest (riba) from the economy removes the parallel financial economy and in
this way an Islamic economy will have real growth built upon wealth which is
invested in the economy rather than debt.
The Islamic ruling on
the gold standard as a currency creates a stable economy allowing long term
decisions to be made.
Sources:
New
Book Coming Soon – Dilemmas of the Arab Spring
For
the Muslim World, 2011 will remain long in the memory when the history books
are finally written. What began with a single man in the markets of Tunisia
spread to thousands on the streets in Cairo and evolved to hundreds of
thousands demanding political change for the entire region. The self immolation
of Mohamed Bouazizi in Tunisia led to a sweeping wave, which crossed the
artificial borders in the Muslim lands.
For
the moment there has been no regime change in the Muslim world but a change in
leadership has taken place in some countries. Western governments and media
have branded the call for change in the region as a call for democracy and
Western values of freedom and secularism. Some in the Muslim world have taken
these concepts without understanding their true reality, in the hope that
change comes to the region.
It
is with this in mind we look at the dilemmas the Arab spring faces. The
challenges in forming a new politics which creates an accountable government,
allows the people to elect their rulers, have independent judiciaries, rights
for citizens and an end to the police state.
Despite
possessing abundant mineral and capital wealth this has only led to the
prosperity for the ruling elites. The Muslim world needs a new economics and
not more of the same failed policies designed in Western capitals. We will look
at how economic development, job creation, economic growth, wealth distribution
all rooted in Islam replace poverty, unemployment and underdevelopment.
The
Arab spring saw men, women, old, young, Christian, Muslim, labourers and
professionals take to the streets to remove their rulers. The West with their
experience in nation building in Iraq and Afghanistan insist that the right of
women, minorities, sects and religion are best preserved by secularism. We
asses' secularisms track record and look at what Islam – something indigenous
to the region has to offer and the type of society that can be created.
Or,
See
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