ABSTRACT
The Rohingya refugees have often viewed Malaysia as open, although Malaysia is a non-signatory of the 1951 Refugees Convention and its 1967 Protocol. Hence, the number of Rohingya refugees in Malaysia had increased to more than 180000 in 2021. A fundamental problem with managing refugees in Malaysia is that there is no real policy in place and thus no real idea of how many, who, and where they are. Every year, less than one percent of the refugees have been successfully sent to a third country worldwide. The current situation has prevented the refugee resettlement matter in Malaysia from being resolved quickly;instead, it takes years and even decades for a small outcome, often without any apparent end. One of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic is that the resettlement releases to third countries worldwide decreased sharply in 2020 due to international travelling had to be stopped. Every year, less than 5 percent of the world's refugees will receive a place in a third country (UNHCR Malaysia, 2021). Therefore, it is essential to understand Rohingya refugees' long-term aspirations to prepare them for the future. The right policy is needed to prepare the refugees to resettle in a third country or eventually return to Myanmar. Therefore, this paper explores the Rohingya refugees' future aspirations and resettlement plans based on qualitative data through semi-structured interviews. This research carried out in-depth qualitative interviews with 10 Rohingya refugees currently living in Malaysia and six Rohingya refugees who have already resettled in a third country and used to stay in Malaysia as their transit country. This research discovered nine livelihood aspirations, three community aspirations, and two-family aspirations shared by the respondents. This study also found that almost all respondents aspire to resettle in a third country in the long run, but the delay in getting resettlement leaves them no choice, but to remain in Malaysia. Hence, this paper concludes that policymakers need to construct settlement programmes to help Rohingya refugees and asylums while they are still in Malaysia and prepare them to settle in the third country eventually. © 2018 Malaysian Consumer and Family.
ABSTRACT
Purpose>Green sukuk is a tool to finance climate change which has garnered considerable attention. However, having only recently come into existence has its own set of challenges for this tool that require immediate identification and government intervention to intensify its growth. This study aims to explore the challenges encountered by green sukuk issuers and the structure of a reconciled green sukuk issuance framework to speed up the market’s growth with the right interventions.Design/methodology/approach>The study engaged a qualitative approach via multiple case study interviews with green sukuk issuers and used expert views for data triangulation to generate the findings. A total of four green sukuk issuers participated in the interviews, and for data triangulation purposes, four expert’s opinions and views were considered. The thematic analysis technique is used to report the findings.Findings>It was revealed that amongst the challenges encountered in the green sukuk market are shoddy green taxonomy, difficulty in identifying green assets, it is time-consuming and costly, no compelling benefits and exposure to higher-risk profiles.Research limitations/implications>This study may be influenced by observer error and observer bias. However, the researchers have taken cautious steps to overcome these issues by following strict case study methodology procedures and triangulating the qualitative research findings with views from green sukuk experts. These interventions increased the rigour and trustworthiness of the results.Originality/value>This study is amongst the pioneer in Malaysia, exploring challenges in the green sukuk market. The results are relevant to governments, regulators, institutions and central banks to structure the right interventions to counter the challenges. Greater government involvement is required to strengthen the green sukuk market and to spearhead the green agenda.