Al-Azhar’s Senior Scholars Authority has not rejected the proposed sukuk law and did not say it violates Sharia (Islamic law), but it only has some reservations on some articles of the law, said Mohamed El-Beltagy, head of the Egyptian Islamic Finance Association.
The law, which was referred by the Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi to the Senior Scholars Authority for approval, is 100% compliant with Islamic principles, he confirmed.
“Al-Azhar’s opinion will be surely respected, but the objections are only on the technicalities of some articles of the law,” he added.
He affirmed that the sukuk law shall be approved as soon as possible so as to save Egypt’s economy, as it has become unclear whether the talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over US$ 4.8 billion loan will succeed or not.
Many reports show that sukuk will attract US$ 200 billion worth of investments to the country from many Islamic and conversational banks which promised to buy sukuk as long as it invests in developmental projects being economically feasible.