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Islamic educators in Mindanao and Makassar compare notes on generative AI in the classroom

Islamic educators in Mindanao and Makassar compare notes on generative AI in the classroom

Ateneo de Davao University hosted an international learning session on 8 September 2026 with visiting scholars from Universitas Muhammadiyah Makassar, Indonesia. Dr Muhammad Ali Bakri presented the Ma'had Al-Birr model, which combines residential Islamic formation with the university curriculum so students pursue both together. Rosmalina Kemala spoke on

Bahrain licenses a stablecoin issuer and writes a standard for it

Bahrain licenses a stablecoin issuer and writes a standard for it

The Central Bank of Bahrain has introduced regulations for stablecoin issuers that build in Sharia compliance requirements. Fitch Ratings called the framework pioneering, citing explicit references to AAOIFI standards and mandatory independent Sharia advisers. The rules cover fiat-backed tokens in dinar, dollars and other currencies, and require transparent treatment of

Indonesia is about to issue binding AI rules, and the drafts leave state use largely unchecked

Indonesia is about to issue binding AI rules, and the drafts leave state use largely unchecked

Indonesia is due to issue two presidential regulations on artificial intelligence in 2026, covering ethics and a national AI roadmap, aimed at promoting ethics, transparency and accountability. The East Asia Forum analysis argues they lean on existing laws that have been selectively enforced and lack independent oversight. It says the

Bangladesh signs a billion-dollar IsDB facility to rebuild its only oil refinery

Bangladesh signs a billion-dollar IsDB facility to rebuild its only oil refinery

On 3 September 2026 Bangladesh and the Islamic Development Bank signed a US$1 billion financing agreement for the modernisation and expansion of the Eastern Refinery. The total project is US$2.5 billion, with the IsDB loan matched by US$1.5 billion from Bangladesh through taxes and duties.

Australia accepts 35 of 54 Islamophobia envoy recommendations, but not enforcement

Australia accepts 35 of 54 Islamophobia envoy recommendations, but not enforcement

On 18 July the Australian government responded to Special Envoy Aftab Malik's Islamophobia report, accepting 35 of its 54 recommendations. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese promised practical action to keep communities safe and strengthen social cohesion. Accepted measures include a taskforce to combat Islamophobia, a review of the Australian

52,000 pages of West African Arabic and Ajami manuscripts are now free online

52,000 pages of West African Arabic and Ajami manuscripts are now free online

Boston University researchers led by anthropologist Fallou Ngom have digitised more than 52,000 pages of Arabic and Ajami manuscripts from Guinea and Senegal, with support from the British Library's Endangered Archives Programme. The two-year effort is described as the largest digital collection of its kind in the

Pakistan, Indonesia and 27 others found a Global South AI cooperation body in Shanghai

Pakistan, Indonesia and 27 others found a Global South AI cooperation body in Shanghai

On 16 July, representatives of 29 states, including Pakistan, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Laos and Russia, founded the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization (WAICO) in Shanghai. Its stated aim is a multipolar, people-centred approach to AI governance, in contrast to Western-set rules. The plan includes 5,000 AI training opportunities over five

The Waqf Fund buys a £1.9m Solihull high-street property to fund charity from rent

The Waqf Fund buys a £1.9m Solihull high-street property to fund charity from rent

The Waqf Fund, a registered charity subsidiary of Human Appeal, completed its fourth UK property acquisition in under two years on 15 September: a £1.9 million freehold retail unit on Solihull High Street, leased to a Danish homeware retailer with more than 70 UK stores. The rent is projected

Your television is running content recognition by default, and the off switch is four menus deep

Your television is running content recognition by default, and the off switch is four menus deep

Most smart TVs sold today run Automatic Content Recognition (ACR) by default: the set fingerprints whatever is on screen every few seconds — broadcast, streaming or a connected game console — and matches it against a reference database, then passes the resulting viewing profile to advertising partners for

CAIR's 2026 civil rights report: 'The Right to be Different'

CAIR's 2026 civil rights report: 'The Right to be Different'

CAIR's Center for Islamophobia Research documented 8,683 civil rights complaints in 2025 in its annual report "The Right to be Different" — the highest single-year total since the organisation began tracking data in 1996, though only marginally above 2024's 8,658. Employment

The world's largest halal trade show gives AI its own sector for the first time

The world's largest halal trade show gives AI its own sector for the first time

The 22nd Malaysia International Halal Showcase (MIHAS), the world's largest dedicated halal trade show, ran 23–26 September at MITEC in Kuala Lumpur under the theme "Shaping Trust, Driving Resilience." Organised by MATRADE under Malaysia's Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry, the

UNICEF and IsDB launch the first global fund built on Muslim philanthropy for children

UNICEF and IsDB launch the first global fund built on Muslim philanthropy for children

UNICEF and the Islamic Development Bank launched the Global Muslim Philanthropy Fund for Children, the first UN-led Muslim philanthropy fund run in partnership with a multilateral development bank. The fund channels zakat, sadaqah and waqf — classical Islamic giving instruments, with global annual zakat alone estimated at up to

UNESCO programme puts women's leadership at the centre of AI capacity-building in the Global South

UNESCO's International Centre for Higher Education Innovation (ICHEI), working with UNESCO's Institute for Information Technologies in Education, launched "AI-Enabled Empowerment: Women's Leadership in Higher Education in the Global South" on 10 September in Paris. The programme runs on three strands —

A Qatari endowment designed to build a new endowment out of its own returns each year

A Qatari endowment designed to build a new endowment out of its own returns each year

Qatar's Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs has received a QR2 million donation for Waqf Al Wuqoof, an endowment structured to fund a new endowment out of its own returns every year rather than distributing profit to beneficiaries directly. Housed under the ministry's wider Waqf for

Diverging sharia opinions, not regulation alone, are fragmenting crypto across Islamic markets

Diverging sharia opinions, not regulation alone, are fragmenting crypto across Islamic markets

Fitch Ratings finds that Islamic markets are converging on crypto adoption but diverging sharply on how it is regulated — the same asset treated as compliant in one jurisdiction and left untouched by law in the next. Malaysia leads on openness: its Securities Commission Shariah Advisory Council has cleared Bitcoin, Ethereum,

Indonesian Islamic universities are absorbing generative AI with no governance framework at all

Indonesian Islamic universities are absorbing generative AI with no governance framework at all

A study published in MURAJA'AH: Journal of Islamic Studies examines how Indonesia's Perguruan Tinggi Keagamaan Islam — its Islamic religious higher education institutions — are absorbing generative AI with no governance framework in place at all. The paper identifies three structural drivers: the Ministry of Religious Affairs, which

Five African universities each receive three million dollars to scale what already works

Five African universities each receive three million dollars to scale what already works

The Mastercard Foundation's inaugural Africa Higher Education for Transformation (AHEFT) Prize — a $500 million commitment over its first decade — named five winners in Accra on 22 September, each receiving $3 million. Addis Ababa University was recognised for aligning research with national priorities and running clinical training that reaches

Global sukuk outstanding crosses one trillion dollars for the first time

Global sukuk outstanding crosses one trillion dollars for the first time

Global sukuk outstanding passed the trillion-dollar mark in 2025 for the first time, reaching $1.015 trillion combined across international ($280.6bn) and domestic ($734.9bn) markets, according to IIFM's fifteenth annual Sukuk Report. Total issuance for the year came to $262.9bn, up 28.2% on 2024

Al-Mahdi Institute convenes scholars on care practitioners in Muslim contexts

Al-Mahdi Institute convenes scholars on care practitioners in Muslim contexts

Al-Mahdi Institute in Birmingham, UK convened an international conference, "Who Cares? Care and Support Practitioners in Muslim Contexts," bringing scholars and practitioners together across three themes: the lived challenges -- mental health, divorce, domestic abuse, ex-offender reintegration -- that create demand for care within Muslim communities; the professional,

A waqf is built to fund mosque security and support affected families

A waqf is built to fund mosque security and support affected families

The North American Islamic Trust, the US custodian of mosque and Islamic-school property deeds since 1973, has launched the Resilience and Protection Waqf -- a proposed multi-million-dollar endowment to fund security training, physical protection upgrades and support for families affected by anti-Muslim violence. NAIT is matching public donations dollar-for-dollar up

Nigeria's education ministry reviews its Renewal Initiative and sets fresh targets

Nigeria's education ministry reviews its Renewal Initiative and sets fresh targets

Nigeria's Federal Ministry of Education has reviewed progress on the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative (NESRI) and set fresh targets, six months after the reform programme's last major stocktake. The review took the form of a ministerial deliverables meeting held on 7 August 2026, revisiting commitments