A SURVEY ON THE “SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY” OF ISLAMIC FINANCE
Loughborough University, UK
Please take a few minutes to complete this survey. Your response will be for statistical use only and will remain strictly confidential. I thank you for your time and co-operation.
QUESTIONNAIRE
A. Personal Profile
1.Age
18-25 years 25-35 years 35-45 years 50-55 years Above 65 years
2.Gender
Male Female
3.Educational Qualifications
GCSE/’O’ Level ‘A’ Level/Equivalent Diploma
Graduate MastersPhD/Post Doctoral
Other Professional Qualification (Please specify) ……………….
4.Profession (Please specify) A researcherin IT Accountancy & Islamic Accountancy
5.Do you work for a Bank or a Non-Bank Financial Institution?
Yes No
6.If yes to the above, can you please state if the institution provides Islamic financial services?
Yes, the institution is an Islamic financial institution
No, the institution is not an Islamic financial institution
Yes, the institution is partly Islamic, providing Islamic financial products
B. Questions on Islamic Finance
1.Islamic finance isequal to ………………..
Only the prohibition of riba
Trade without interest
A socially acceptable, just financial system
A human oriented, environmentally friendly financial system
All the above
2.“Islamic finance is a third way between capitalism and socialism.”
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree
- If agreeable to question 2, it is because Islamic finance ……………….
prohibits riba and encourages trade
is based on equity finance
is against speculation but is production oriented
represents a more efficient financial system
is an integrated system of financial affairs which includes the civil society, the state and the private sector
(Please rank your answers between 1 and 5; 1 is most important and 5 is least important)
4.“The Islamic financial set-up imposes upon the Islamic financial institutions an extra parameter – namely a socio-economic purpose – in addition to the responsibilities assigned to them by the conventional financial laws.”
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree
5.Increasingly, investment funds in the West propagate a social, environmental and ethical agenda. Their investment objectives often seek to build sustainable communities. Islamic financial institutions should adopt the objectives of these funds in their quest for sustainable development.
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree
- The investment funds mentioned above are often called “socially responsible funds”. What key words would you use to describe the term “socially responsible”?
Co-operation, Assistance, No-Injustice, Fair with every thing
- Socially responsible funds in the West do not hesitate to spell out their “ethical” policies in their mission statements. It is argued that Islamic banks could usefully emulate this approach.
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree
- How should financial gain be ranked in comparison to the social objectives of financial institutions?
Less important
Equally important
More important
Not important
Not concerned
9.“Acting in a socially responsible manner can create value for financial institutions.”
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree
C. Questions on Islamic Financial Institutions
1.Would you say Islamic financial institutions are contributing in a significant way towards socio-economic welfare?
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree
2.Should “social organizations” rather than “financial institutions” be responsible for undertaking morally motivated economic and financial activities?
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree
3.Would you say your organization is “socially responsible”?
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree
4.Does your financial institution publicize its criteria of selection for its investments?
Yes No
5.What are these criteria?
Not investing in riba
Not investing in impermissible activities like gambling, alcohol, pork, pornography, etc.
Not investing in forward currency transactions
Not investing in environmentally pollutive economic activities
Not investing in the arms industry
Investing in companies that contribute positively to society
Investing in environmentally friendly activities
Investing in profit and loss sharing arrangements
Others (Please specify) ………………………………………………
6.What percentage of your organisation’s annual profits would you say is spent on community enhancing activities, if there is any?
0 – 2%2 – 5% 5 – 7% 7 – 10%
7.Is your organisation involved in the financing of any of the following activities? What percentage of your profits is attributed to these activities, where it is applicable?
Types of Involvement / Yes / No / % of Profit AllocatedDonations to community causes / / 3
Donations to charities / / 1
Provision of benevolent loans (qard al-hassanah) / / 3
Sponsorship of community events /
Working with local schools, colleges, universities /
Working with NGOs for sustainable development /
Scholarship to students / / 3
Supporting employee involvement with community causes / / 2
Lobbying for a particular social, ethical or environmental cause /
Investing or encouraging investment in deprived areas /
Investment in Research & Development / / 8
Investing according to ethical guidelines /
Commitment to sustainable development /
Zakah collection and distribution / / 2.5
Establishing fair recruitment practices, including engaging people traditionally excluded from the labour market e.g. disabled, homeless, ethnically discriminated /
Staff welfare (loans, health schemes, etc.) /
Taking initiatives to protect the environment (e.g. recycling) or enhance environmental management / / 1
Promoting ethical values among staff (e.g. against- bribery, corruption, conflict; pro- honesty, trust, brotherhood, justice) /
Abstaining from false advertising /
Sharing best practice on social, ethical and environmental responsibility with other organisations /
1