…………..As SEC and NIC are set to Publish Sukuk and Takaful Guidelines
Report: Mohammed A. Abu
The Special Advisor to the Governor of Bank of Ghana on Non-Interest Banking and finance Prof John Gartchie Gatsi,has advised potential local and foreign parties interested in rendering services relating to sukuk (non-interest bond) and Takaful (non-interest insurance) to rather consider engaging directly the Securities Exchange Commission(SEC) and the National Insurance Commission(NIC) and not the Bank of Ghana.
The two institutions, he said, have the regulatory oversight responsibility over sukuk (Non-Interest Bonds) and Takaful (Non-Interest Insurance) respectively and not the Bank of Ghana (BOG). Those interested in sukuk under writing he said, should therefore consider contacting directly SEC as Sukuk is a Capital Market product.
Prof Gasti was speaking during an exclusive, with your favourite, Eco-Enviro News Africa, in Accra, Monday.
BOG in charge of regulating and supervising the operations of non-interest banking institutions had earlier this year issued its Guidelines for the Regulation and Supervision of Non-Interest Banking, 2025.
Sukuk and Takaful Guidelines
Prof Agatsi also disclosed that SEC and NIC have gone very far regarding sukuk and Takaful Guidelines expected to be out, between March-April, 2026.
BOG, Prof Gasti said, from the word go, had ensured effective coordination among the relevant state institutional stakeholders and had thus, carried along, the two institutions. Capacity building for the said institutional stakeholders, he said, is on-going and also entails visits to Malaysia, Nigeria among others, in order to draw useful lessons.
The Scope of the Non-Interest Finance Industry
The non-Interest finance Industry( Islamic finance industry)entails, Banking, Takaful (Insurance),Microfinance, market products with particular reference to sukuk, Fund Management, Equity and Venture Capital,Ijara(Lease),Real Estate finance and Halal Business.
Also included are the social financing tools namely,waqf(endowments),Zakat(compulsory Tax for the poor) and Sadaqa(Charitable donations).These are all sub-sets of the non-interest economy system.
Non-Interest Economy Philosophy
The economic philosophy underpinning the non-Interest Finance industry is that man to man trade, commercial and all other forms of economic activity should be ethically driven, for the mutual benefit of all parties, ensuring fairness and equity without exploitation of man by man avoided.
Then also, every human generation act as Trustees, for the diverse unquantifiable heavenly endowed natural resources and therefore collectively have the responsibility to manage them most responsibly and prudently for sustainable development and to bequeath that as its legacy to the next generation.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has since considered it prudent partnering the Jeddah, Saudi Arabia based Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) to organize courses in Islamic Finance and the UN Sustainable Development Goals(UN SDGS) while, the Bretton Woodes institutions and the World Economic Forum have since endorsed it’s development friendliness for emerging markets in particular.