Some Thoughts on the Principles of Economic Policymaking in the Islamic Emirate Afghanistan

Economic policy is a key project in articulating and consolidating Islamic rule in Afghanistan. It is therefore necessary to think about principles of economic policymaking. Below we set out some initial thoughts in this regard.

I The Objective of Economic Policymaking in the IEA

The fundamental purpose of economic policymaking in the Islamic Emirate Afghanistan is to establish an Islamic economy in the country. An Islamic economy is an economy which functions to promote the achievement of falah in akhirat at the mass level – ma’ash is a means for achieving falah in ma’ad. That is why Islamic economic teachings are all to be found in our fiqh literature.

This objective fundamentally separates the Islamic approach to economic question from capitalism and secularism. The purpose of economic policymaking in capitalism is to continuously increase consumption as a means for accumulation of capital. The key capitalist values are competition and accumulation. Economic policymaking under capitalism functions to promote these values.
Islam rejects hirs and hasad as معاصی and our economic policy must be a means to facilitate the formation of an individuality which is صابر، متوکل and غنی. Thus economic policy of the Islamic Emirate Afghanistan must seek wealth creation as a means for the promotion of صبر، توکل and انفاق at the mass level.

In the IEA wealth creation is necessary but is not an end in itself. The process of wealth creation must be a means for the promotion of wealth creation at the mass level. This is a difficult ask and requires the careful integration of economic policymaking with the comprehensive dawah effort of the Islamic government. Capitalist economic theory can provide very limited guidance in how to integrate the wealth creation process with the process of development of Islamic individuality.

It presumes that man is naturally حریص and حاسد and wealth creation is an end in itself, not a means for moral and spiritual development. We must craft our economic policy fundamentally differently from that of capitalist (including socialist) regimes. This does not mean that we should not use some analytical tools developed in capitalist economic theory but we must carefully adapt them to serve our economic objective – the creation of wealth is a means for the promoting of انفاق، صبر and توکل at the mass level.

II Economic Policy must be mass crafted

if the objective of economic policymaking is the moral and spiritual transformation of the masses, the masses must be involved in the economic policymaking process. The masses must be made to “own” the economic policymaking process- they must be shown that economic policy is not being imposed upon them from above but they are full participants in the economic policymaking and implementation process. This requires two crucial steps.

(a) State involvement in community building: State administration must be integrated with community life through the nationwide mosque and madrassah network. This community basis mosque/madrassah network must be developed in the form of local government spread throughout Afghanistan. Mosque imams must be authorized to play a community leadership role.

Economic decision making process at the local level must be gradually developed to the mosque based community level. Secularizing Afghan communities is a key objective of the imperialists. UN and NATO Humanitarian intervention effort articulated through their “bottom up” strategy. The CBO/NGO network set up by the imperialists must be dismantled for it is aimed at promoting حرص and حسد at the mass level through wealth creation and trying to subvert the mass basis of the Islamic government.

(b) The introduction of mass based planning: The knowledge of a planning system is absolutely essential for governing the domestic market and for safeguarding the national economy from imperialist subjugation. The planning system should be devised to integrate decision making and policy implementation throughout the economy.

The planning administration should consist of thousands of people and planning units should be established in every market, every enterprise, every district and every province to participate in the plan conception and implementation process with the central planning office. This should be a constant two way flow of information and directives throughout the system and a continuous process of reformulation of targets should be undertaken in light of the interactions . Dawah majalis should be established at all levels of the planning system to monitor and promotes the moral and spiritual impact of planning decision.

III We must aim at national Self-Reliance

Afghanistan is an exceptional Islamic state in that it is situated within a global dar-al-harb. The global economy is not organized on the basis of Islamic (or even religious) principles. Moreover, imperialist forces are constantly working to subordinate the Afghan economy to imperialism markets and state dictates. Such subordination will make the development of an Islamic economy (an economy where wealth creation is a means for the inculcation of sabr, tawakkul and infaq) impossible. If we are to create and operate Islamic economy in present circumstances we must seek to promote national self-reliance.
However it is also the case that we cannot at present isolate ourselves from the global capitalist economy. Gradually we must find out and we also need technological inputs.

Our current account balance for 2023 is hugely negative and can only gradually be reduced. The realistic option is not to seek isolation from the global capitalist system but to reshape the mode of interaction (the modus vivendi) of international transactional forums with global market and capitalist states.

The key element of this recrafting strategy is the establishment of state monopoly and control over international trade, financial and technology flows. The domestic private sector should be allowed to deal with foreign markets only through the agency of the IEA . This requires:

(a) Monopolization of foreign trade and institute of import licensing. Non-ethical import should be prohibited.

(b) All foreign currency inflows should be surrendered to the IEA government and be converted into the local currency (except the proportion allocated for financing of imports) and the gradual complete de-dollarization/de-Rupeesization of the economy.

(c) Flexible management of our foreign exchange rate (which we have succeeded in doing).

(d) Nationalization of the existing financial institution and thus replacement by a tamveeli system. Severance of interest (riba) and speculation based links with global financial markets.

(e) Da Bank Afghanistan should be the sole issuer of the domestic currency and should circulate a comprehensive currency and credit plan linked to the national economic plan.

(f) Encouragement of direct foreign investment specially in the form of joint (BOT) transaction with state and domestic private enterprise

(g) Increase in agricultural productivity so as to able to terminate the imperialist humanitarian aid program by 2027 at the best.

(h) Development of trade, investment and technology transfer linkages with countries that have been and are being pushed out of the global trade and financing system. These include Russia, Iran, Venezuela, Cuba and North Korea. Attempts must be made to set up institutional mechanisms for dialogue with these states.

IV. We must build a jihadi and a welfare economy

If Afghanistan is not to be absorbed in global capitalist order we must build a jihadi economy. The jihad is not over only its harbi phase had ended. The mobilization as achieved during the jihadi period must be sustained and the triumph of mujahideen who fought in the war should now become economic administrators at the community, bazar and district levels. This is a means for transferring the spirit of jihad from the mujahideen to Afghan masses.

Building a jihadi economy requires rapid investment in arms related expenditure and employment. Expenditure on defense systems should not be seen as waste but as an onward continuation to technological upgrading, skill formation and employment formation throughout the economy.
If the arm system is to play a role in wealth creation it must be linked to other sectors of the economy especially agriculture, mining, capital goods production, information and processing and surveillance -Israel provides a contemporary example of how can this be done effectively .
The arm production sector is also fully integrated with the US industrial empire and infrastructure . (It must not be forgotten that Internet is a US military sector product)

Building linkages between Employment and technology with linkages to production of armament and other (capitalist goods, agriculture, mining, IT and services) should be a key factor to consider by economic policy makers of the IEA. This is in nutshell mean (a) increasing arm capacity to tackle imperialist fire power challenges ahead   (b) institutionalize technological development culture for defense purposes  (c) promoting spirit of Jihad among the masses

The khilafat-e-Rashda until the collapse of the Usmania sultanat was a jihadi states and Islamic political literature (Imam Mawardi, Imam Abu Yala) enumerate jihad as a permanent duty of Islamic rule. The Support to this jihadi environment is usually provided by families, tribes and communities in Islamic societies. In existing circumstances the IAE may play a role in the promotion of social services but this should not be a major concern of state policy. The Islamic state is not a welfare state in that it does not justify its existence with reference to the goal of continually raising the standard of living of its people.

Conclusion:

a. The objective of Islamic policymaking is to create an Islamic individuality which sees ma’ash mainly as a means for achieving falah in ma’ad.

b. To achieve this objective the Islamic government needs to:

1. Institutionalization mass toward economic planning and administration

2. Achieve national self-reliance by restricting the transactional form of association with the global capitalist economy of the global dar-al-harb.

3. Build a jihadi not a welfare economy.