Secretary General of the Centre for Islamic Finance Compliance and Advice (CIFCA), Mr. Salum Lupande participated in the 2nd Sharia Compliance and Halal Business Expo 2025 in Nairobi, Kenya, together with CIFCA Leadership Advisor, Sheikh Khalfan Abdallah. The forum brought together key stakeholders in Islamic finance, Halal trade, certification bodies, regulators, and private sector players across East Africa.
CIFCA's participation reflects its growing role as a regional thought leader and coordinating institution in advancing Islamic finance and the Halal ecosystem in Tanzania and beyond.
Key Objectives:
CIFCA’s engagement in the Expo was guided by the following strategic objectives:
- Institutional Positioning: To position CIFCA as a central coordinating body for Shariah compliance, advisory, and capacity building in Tanzania and strengthen CIFCA’s visibility within the East African Islamic finance and Halal ecosystem.
- Knowledge and Capacity Building: To acquire practical insights on: Halal certification systems, Shariah governance frameworks, and Integration between Islamic finance and Halal industries; and to benchmark best practices from more advanced ecosystems such as Kenyas.
- Stakeholder Engagement and Partnerships: To establish strategic relationships with: Halal certification bodies in Kenya, Islamic finance practitioners, and Halal Trade facilitators and regulators; and to explore collaboration opportunities for capacity building and technical advisory.
- Policy and Market Development Insights: To assess regulatory and institutional frameworks supporting: Halal industry development; and Islamic finance integration; and to identify models adaptable to the Tanzanian context.
Key Output:
The participation of CIFCA in the Expo has reinforced its strategic position as a key driver of Islamic finance and Halal industry development in Tanzania and validated it’s approach of positioning itself as a multi-sector facilitator, not limited to finance.
The engagement presents a strong opportunity for CIFCA to expand its regional influence, support ecosystem development, and advance Islamic finance as a driver of sustainable economic growth in East Africa. The experience highlights a critical opportunity for CIFCA to adopt Kenya’s experience in the Halal Industry and be a catalyst for Tanzania to:
- Develop a structured, integrated Halal ecosystem
- Leverage Islamic finance as a catalyst for economic growth
- Position itself competitively within the East African and global Halal market.
