UAE & Oman
Sharia, Islamic Finance, and Contemporary Society in The UAE and Oman
June 6-16, 2008
Itinerary
This 11-day seminar begins in Al Ain and ends in Dubai, both in the UAE, and includes site visits to Abu Dhabi, UAE and Muscat, Oman.
Seminar Fee
CIEE Member: $3,300 Non-Member: $3,500
Academic Content (please note this is tentative and subject to change)
Lectures
- History of Islamic Thought and Values
- History of the UAE and the Role of the Family in Emirati Culture
- Principles of Sharia and the Developing Role of Islamic Finance
- Women and Culture
- History of Educational and Educational Reform in the UAE
- Islamic History and Civilization: Focus on Oman
- Islamic Systems and the Evolution of Islamic Economics
- The Role of the Bank as Intermediary for Resource Mobilization and Systemic Economic Diversification: Relevance to Oman
- Omani Culture and Society
Co-curricular Site Visits & Field Trips
- Al Ain Museum, Fort, Al Ain Oasis
- Department of Islamic Affairs, Al Ain
- Dubai Islamic Bank, Stock Market, Sharia Courts, Media City, Jumeirah Mosque and Blue Souq of Sharjah
- Abu Dhabi Cultural Foundation and UAE National Library, Emirates Palace, Heritage Village, Women's Handcraft Center
- Tour of Corniche and visit to Central Souq in Oman
- Coastal Tour of Muscat
- Muscat Grand Mosque
Rationale
Learn the core concepts of Islamic thought and values and how they are applied to various aspects of contemporary society in the UAE and Oman. Participants will travel from the desert oasis of Al Ain to the global crossroads of Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the UAE, and finally to the pristine shores of Muscat, Oman. Hosted by the national universities of both countries, the United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) and Sultan Qaboos University (SQU), faculty from Colleges of Law, Sharia and Islamic Studies, Business and Economics and Humanities and Social Sciences will lecture on Sharia law, the development of Islamic banking in the Gulf, the family, the history of education and contemporary educational reform, the role of women, and the role of the media in society. Participants will have an opportunity to visit a Sharia court, the Stock Market, Islamic financial institutions, Media City Dubai, the Blue Souq of Sharjah and the Grand Mosque of Oman.
Host Institutions
Founded in 1977, the United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) is the oldest and largest degree-granting public university in the United Arab Emirates, with its campuses in Al- Ain, an oasis city located to the east of Dubai and Abu Dhabi on the border between the UAE and Oman. The University offers a broad array of undergraduate degree programs and a selected number of Master's programs. The UAEU has over 3,300 faculty and staff serving approximately 14,000 students.
Sultan Qaboos University was created in 1986 and is the premier national university of the Sultanate of Oman. Located in Muscat, it is comprised of eight colleges: Agriculture and Marine Sciences, Art and Social Sciences, Commerce and Economics, Education, Engineering, Medicine and Science. Sultan Qaboos offers a broad array of undergraduate programs serving approximately 10,000 students, about half of which are female.
Seminar Leadership
Dr. Mohamed Belkhir is an Assistant Professor at the United Arab Emirates University in the College of Business and Economics. He was also an Assistant Professor at the University of Tunis and University of Jendouba in Tunis, and a lecturer at the IESEG Business School in Lille, France and the University of Orleans, France where he earned his Ph.D in Finance. Dr. Belkhir was a Fulbright Visiting Research Scholar at the University of North Texas and spent a term at the International Monetary Fund in Washington, DC. Most recently he was instrumental in planning a seminar the UAEU sponsored on Islamic Finance.
This seminar was organized by Dr. Peggy Sharpe, Assistant Chief Academic Officer at the United Arab Emirates University, with the assistance of Tariq Tahan, and Dr. Mona Fahad Al-Said, Advisor to the Vice Chancellor for International Relations at Sultan Qaboos University.
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