KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 4: Dr Rifaat Ahmed Abdel Karim has been appointed as the first secretary-general of the Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) here on Monday for three years, after the conclusion of a two-day meeting of nine founding members of the new organization.

Dr Rifaat, currently the secretary-general of the Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions, will assume his new office in early 2003. The secretariat of the IFSB  will be in Kuala Lumpur.

Later, speaking at a news conference, he said that all the Islamic countries were likely to join the IFSB to promote Islamic banking and financial services. Qater was a new member of the organization, he said and added that except for Oman and the UAE, all the Gulf Cooperation Countries had joined the board.

Replying to a question, the IFSB secretary-general said that he would be shortly holding meetings with the senior authorities of the World bank and the International Monetary Fund to brief them on the objectives of promoting the Islamic banking and financial services.

He does not believe that there will be a conflict of interest between the IFSB, and other international financial institutions and banks. “We will be working with all Muslim and non-Muslim countries to spearhead an international cooperation to highlight the need for prudential standards specifically developed for the Islamic banks”, he added.

In reply to another question, he said the Islamic banking and finance was gaining momentum and receiving due recognition from the global financial community. He said that many foreign delegates who had attended the signing ceremony of the IFSB had very keenly observed the two-day proceedings, and that they might cooperate with the board. “The reason for this is that we will be a regulatory authority to promote a prudent Islamic banking and financial system”, he added.