MUSLIM BUSINESS PARTNERSHIP

According to different data, Muslims constitute 15 to 17 per cent of the Russian population. Their share in the country’s large businesses is approximately the same – 14 per cent. However, taking into account medium-sized and small businesses, this figure is more than double - 32 per cent. These data were made public at the 1st All-Russian Congress of the Association of Muslim Businessmen of the Russian Federation (AMB of the RF).

In an interview with R+, its President Marat Kabayev spoke about work to be done by the organization.

- Marat Vazykhovich, what is the purpose behind establishing a faith-based business community?

- There are business associations of Christians, Jews and, possibly, other faiths, in different Russian regions, and there is nothing strange about this. Therefore, we decided to bring together business people who are Muslims. But this does not mean that we are separated from everyone. Yes, only Muslims can be members of our organization, but representatives of different faiths can be our partners. In which case, however, they are expected to meet our requirements.

- What kinds of requirements?

- Allorganizationswithout exception, which are not involved in activities that Islam bans, can be our partners.

- What kinds of requirements does AMB of the RF set for new joiners?

- For members of the association there is a mandatory condition – when doing business, they must comply with canons of Islam: exclude trading in all kinds of products that are not halal, exclude all transactions that are related to the issuance or receipt of money or other assets as debt under an interest rate and trade transactions that involve alcoholic drinks and food that are banned for Muslims.

Applicants are required to fill in questionnaires about their business and lifestyle. In addition, we do not admit anyone without references from two warrantors. Some people may find this offensive and they might say that they are a well-known person and businessman and that we, however, require somebody to vouch for them. But rules are the same for everyone without exception. Then, we carefully check the information we receive. After all, there have been cases when, for example, all sorts of radicals, Wahhabis tried to join our association. We try to stay away from these kinds of people. But we would never push anyone away. A person may improve and rethink their attitude to life.

- The association was established in 2011, but the first congress was only held last December. What is the reason for such a long period of preparation?

- Until 2014, the association had only operated in Tatarstan. It was headed, very successfully, by Radik Gafurov. In 2014, I was invited to head it. I did not accept the offer immediately. However, at a personal meeting I had with the mufti of Tatarstan, Kamil Khazrat Samigullin, he, as the saying goes, “ignited” in me the idea of expanding the organization to make it Russian-wide and international. I accepted the offer.
As step one, I was invited to organize iftar for 5,000 people, which we did last summer at the Kazan Arena stadium. We did a good job, thank God. Attending were top officials from the Republic of Tatarstan and guests from different Russian regions and foreign countries. Among those invited there were both people in need of help – families with many children and low income, disabled people and orphan children - and businessmen and politicians.

Then, in September we held a charity football match in Moscow, in which representatives of different ethnic groups and faiths took part. There was the slogan on the players’ T-shirts: “A friendly Russia - a strong country”. The score was a draw - 3:3.
I am talking about major public events - so to speak, a loud declaration about ourselves and what we are capable of doing. However, the bulk of what AMB does is daily hard work with the country’s Muslim business community.

We have made significant achievements, too. Since the beginning of the year AMB has been supplying halal food for Aeroflot planes. In the near future, it is planned to open a halal food plant in Moscow to produce meals for passengers of all types of transport in Russia – air transport, river transport, sea transport, and railway and road transport.
Yet the most important part of our activity is education. The association has developed “The code of a Muslim businessman”, which is a set of rules and regulations to be followed by a businessman in his everyday life. It consists of sections like religious foundations of entrepreneurship; self-development as the basis of successful entrepreneurship; an entrepreneur’s attitude to business partners, suppliers and consumers, as well as employees; charity; attitude towards the state and patriotism.
We have an Islamic school of business, which gives everyone interested an opportunity to receive free knowledge in marketing, taxation, etc.

- In what city does this school operate?

- In Kazan, but our students do not have to travel there. Classes are taught via Skype, too. There is an entrepreneurship factory, where experienced instructors teach young people basics of entrepreneurship. We provide free consultations, mainly for small businesses. All these projects are, figuratively speaking, intended to give budding businessmen not fish but a fishing rod and teach them how to fish. People often ask us to help them find a job. We have created a database of employment opportunities. It is necessary to give people an opportunity to do useful things. After all, that is better for them than going to nightclubs.

- But you do bring businessmen together, don’t you? They do not sit idle anyway.

- Actually, it is mainly small businesses that we deal with.

- How about large businesses?

- We have reached the level where we can communicate with them so they see partners in us.

- Do you mean they had not noticed you before?

- We did not actually even try to access them at once. That would not have been the right thing to do anyway. One should somehow start with oneself.

- You said that one of the aspects of the work of the association is communication with government agencies. What is it about? Do you help members of the association resolve issues that are within the competence of the authorities? Do you defend them if necessary? Do you provide them with lawyers? Has that ever happened?

- Certainly, wehavelawyers, too. Very skilled ones. I will give you just one example. Ruslan Nagiyev, a representative of the Russian AMB, filed an appeal with the Sakhalin Regional Court last September, demanding that the court repeal the ruling that effectively recognized as extremist a number of suras and ayahs from the Koran. Jointly with Chechen lawyers we won the case. Now about entrepreneurs. They are not always right. Therefore, we carefully study each case before helping anyone.

- This is clear. But if a businessman is right, how does the association help him?

- The first thing we do in each region where we open a representative office is establish relations with its leadership - the governor, the head of the republic. Our representative gets an opportunity to use this administrative resource, if necessary - for example, in a situation where a local businessman is unable to contact a senior official or if the consideration of an important issue is delayed. At the federal level, we are constantly in touch with the presidential administration, parliament, and the Foreign Ministry. We plan to delegate our candidates to take part in municipal, regional and federal government agencies to lobby for the interests of Muslim entrepreneurs.

- Apart from defending the interests of members of AMB, what else do you do to help them?

- We help them establish contacts both within the country and abroad. For example, we gave such help to Ayrat Bashirov, the president of company Danaflex which makes high-quality packaging products. Then, we found partners in the Emirates for a plant that makes LED bulbs, and so on.

- Do you have an office in the United Arab Emirates as well?

- No, butweareworkingonthat. At the moment, we have a representative office in Kuwait. We have received many invitations - from Iran, the UAE, Bangladesh and other countries. The association plans to open representative offices in all the 57 member countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

- As far as I know, AMB already has representative offices in many Russian regions. How are the heads of those offices selected?

- When selecting a candidate as a representative of the association in the regions of the country we certainly inquire about their relationship with the business community of the region, the authorities and the clergy. We need to do this in order to prevent people from asking us for help about anything and to make sure that things are dealt with on the spot. Candidates are mainly selected from among regional large and medium-sized businesses, but sometimes from among small ones, too. If a person suits all parameters, we introduce that person to the governor or the head of the republic as an official representative of the association.

- You visited Baku last summer. Does AMB have links with the Azerbaijani business community? Are there Russian entrepreneurs who are ethnic Azeris among members of AMB?

- I was visiting Baku for the opening of the European Games. I was delighted – it was colourful, big and spectacular! I liked Baku a lot. I had not been there for a long time. I visited that city for the first time in 1976 to attend a junior football tournament, playing for the Russian national team.

- Who won?

- I can’t remember as it was such a long time ago. I just remember that it was not us. But I met guys there and we are still friends.

- Did you have business meetings during this visit?

- Yes, certainly. We arrived in Baku together with a businessman from St Petersburg, Rafael Nuri, who is an ethnic Azeri. At his suggestion, I met Azerbaijani businessmen and several candidates for the post of head of our future representative office in Azerbaijan.

- Is Rafael Nuri a member of the association?

- No, buthealwaysattends ourevents. He visited Kazan to attend iftar. There are ethnic Azeris in the association. For example, Farid Novruzi, who has businesses in Russia, Turkey and Azerbaijan. We have Azerbaijani businessmen from Moscow, Perm and other Russian cities. We cooperate with Elshad Iskandarov, chairman of the OIC’s Youth Forum.

- Is the economic crisis in the country having any impact on the operation of the association?

- Totellthetruth, the establishment of our organization actually happenedto coincidewiththegrowingcrisis. We were told that it would not be easy and that it was not the right time for us to start doing things. But I am somehow optimistic about what is happening. Rather than do nothing and be upset, we must, on the contrary, mobilize all resources, and not only for survival but also for growth - economic, spiritual and intellectual growth.