When we r busy creating issues out of something as mainstream as Islamic finance, serious countries in our neighbourhood are tapping into the trillion dollar sector.


"South Africa, where less than 2 percent of the 49.1 million people are Muslim, is looking to tap the Islamic finance industry’s $1 trillion in assets. Moody’s Investors Service rates the nation A3, the second-highest investment grade on the continent, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
“Islamic investors are prevented from buying conventional debt, so there is pretty strong ongoing demand for Islamic debt,” Mark Watts, head of fixed-income at National Bank of Abu Dhabi PJSC, which manages 4.1 billion dirhams ($1.1 billion), said by phone. “The issuance of sukuk is a good way to access this market.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-12-06/south-africa-seeks-banks-to-advise-it-on-structuring-sale-of-sukuk-bonds.html

U wonder why we keep retrogressing? Explain this

A sizeable portion of your population have cash to invest but are restricted by their faith to invest in intrest bearing securities, so the central bank set the rules on how this sector should be taped(not take anybodies money or give anybody money) instead of let those in the financial sector prepare to tap this mouth watering sector in the face of global recession, u have religious jingoists telling us that no it's not good for our economy.(just like a carpenter showing a surgeon how to stitch)

Now answer that for me.