TURKEY SHOWS THE WAY…The first World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul, Turkey held in May.
Why Turkey offers a good model of progress and growth to the rest of the Islamic world
DR MANSOOR DURRANI | Caravan Daily
“Our leaders are inefficient” and “cruel” and “corrupt”! These are common complaints or discussion points in our part of the world. There is some truth in such remarks. But there is another eternal truth, i.e. leaders are not parachuted from the sky. They come from the society, from among us. They are our own reflection. For historical reasons, Turkey has been very close to Muslims’ hearts!
Less than a century back, as seat of Islamic caliphate, Turks were our political masters. Leading a global political empire covering parts of Europe, Africa and Asia for half a millennia requires a lot of capabilities. But all that came to an end in the aftermath of the World War I.
What was left behind of this massive empire is presently the Republic of Turkey. Since the beginning of this century, Turkey has experienced the country’s first set of democratic governments. The present leadership may have its share of failings. But overall, they command a high level of genuine respect and love from the masses.
My business takes me to Turkey frequently. Last month, I visited one of the most iconic (multi-billion dollars) infrastructure projects in Turkey’s modern history, which my team and I are honored to have structured and financed, together with a club of banks.
This is among a large number of infrastructure projects the Turkish leadership has been executing to make the life of its citizens easier. Such a leadership came from a society which – in my personal experience – is full of educated, progressive, honest, hardworking, humble, kind and generous people – a society worth emulating.
Turkey is also at the forefront of humanitarian efforts. Like all sincere nations, it walks the talk. It presently hosts 3 million Syrian refugees. All of them were welcomed as guests. Last month, Turkey hosted two back-to-back, high profile humanitarian conferences.
One was under the banner of the United Nations (UN) and another organized by the World Congress of Muslim Philanthropists (WCMP).
I was invited to speak in two sessions for which I shared my understanding and views on “giving” in our faith.
After the opening supplication (Fatiha), the very third sentence of our Holy Book (Chapter: The Cow) states that the Qur’an is a guide “for those who spend from what We [The God] have given them”! So in our faith, “giving” is an absolute religious obligation. Not optional. And the giving mentioned here is not the annual, mandatory 2.5% zakah.
This is additional giving. It seems that the extent of guidance we receive from the Qu’ran is linked to the quantum of our charity. With the ever widening gap between the rich and the poor, our giving also needs to increase.
The theme of the WCMP event was apt: “resetting priorities and redefining roles”. Conservative estimates indicate Muslims have been collectively donation amounting to over US$100 billion every year. But the impact of such a large scale giving is not as visible as it should be.
I consider two broad categories for our charity dollars: (1) repair and maintenance and (2) reconstruction. The repair and maintenance consists of feeding the hungry, providing shelter and medical care to poor, supporting orphans, ever increasing relief and rehab work etc.
And just for the record, Islam never sanctions building gold-plated mosques! Ongoing repair and maintenance is extremely important. And a significant amount must be continuously allocated for that. No doubt. But in my view, an unduly larger chunk of total charity funds are allocated there. And only a fraction of the giving is directed towards work reconstruction work. This is a flawed strategy with long-term negative consequences.
Reconstruction will pull us out of our present state of helplessness and humiliation and will allow us to stand on our own strong feet; consequently expanding the repair and maintenance pool as well. The building blocks of reconstruction are: setting up world-class schools, entrepreneurship development centers, microfinance institutions, social and media research centers, data warehouses and etc. There is widespread acknowledgement about the lack of accurate data in Muslim communities. And in the 21st century, we can’t develop effective strategic plans without credible data.
Unlike repair and maintenance, reconstruction projects require large doses of capital. And their real value takes longer time to emerge. This must be clearly understood. Like building a tall structure begins from the ground, not the 30th floor or the 50th floor. Similarly, the foundation of strong and sustainable societies also begins at schools, not top-end colleges or universities.
At present, that foundation is very weak. This is reflected in the fact that not a single school student from Muslim countries made to the list of the top 40 PISA score countries (http://indiaopines.com/a-tale-oftwo-economies-south-korea-and-egypt/) and only 2 universities from over 50 Islamic nations are listed amongst the top 200 universities in the world. This basically points that just 1% of our universities compared with over 20% of the Muslim population!
Is the US responsible for this pathetic state? Or is Israel responsible?? I often stand up in front of my teams with a piece of pencil and ask them “have you ever come across a world-class pencil that is made in Bangladesh, or Indonesia or Egypt? A pencil which is recognized from Toronto to Tokyo as world’s top brand?”
I do not ask them about smart phones or iPads or other hi-tech gadgets. I ask about a petty product such as a pencil. And the answer is obviously, no!
So when one-fifth of humanity is just consumer and not contributing anything useful – to only become liability on the planet and not an asset – how can we expect to earn any respect in this world?
Indian Muslim “leadership” cries and cribs on the pathetic situation of the community. Let’s not forget that the global situation is not too different either. Our faith teaches us honesty! It’s time to admit our deficiencies and take corrective measures, i.e. top-dollars should be allocated for reconstruction. And immediately!
“Redefining roles” is another critical area that – as we discussed in Turkey – needs our urgent attention. Our charitable organizations are run by supremely sincere but not-too-competent people. Like business organizations, we must employ top-talent and cutting-edge business practices. Charity is a serious business. And it must be run very professionally.
We hardly come across a Head or CEO of Muslim charities having MBA from top business schools. Or having extensive experience in top-corporates. Even those from non-management/corporate backgrounds can be enrolled for short courses in “Social Enterprise” or “Governance in Not-for-profit” offered by premier business schools like Harvard and INSEAD. But not much interest is visible in this either!
Employment of high caliber professionals in the social sector will multiply the returns in terms of social impact. Even from a religious standpoint there is no restriction in giving competitive salaries (within the available means) to high caliber staff who are capable of enhancing the value of giving through sharp strategic planning and impeccable execution of social projects.
In my experience, there is a lot more saving (and value) in engaging such professionals who adopt the best business practices, governance structures, bring efficiency and transparency, performance measurement systems etc. In order to make perceptible positive changes in the society, both resetting priorities and redefining roles are extremely urgent needs. And the Istanbul conference has at least kicked-off this crucial debate!
