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This thesis presents and applies at Islamic economics one of the approaches on basis of wich is it possible to identify or to refuse Islamic economics as a new paradigm. The aim of the thesis is achieved by the way of comparison of this concept to the economics as such, defined on the basis of Colader's, Holt's and Rosser's definition of mainstream economics, and the conclusion is made that on the basis of the comparative analysis it is rather impossible to describe modern Islamic economics as a new paradigm in economics.

Zakat is an obligatory payment that a free and rational Muslim who owns a certain amount of wealth has to observe. The idea of zakat investment was initiated by the belief that providing the poor and needy with a non-substantial amount of fund that is mostly used to pay for their consumption is not enough to tackle poverty. Collection of zakat itself also has been shown insufficient even to provide them with a subsistence level of income. Muslim scholars suggest a long-term measure involving the investment of zakat that not only supplement the poor with a stream of income that is more consistent and continuous, equip them with the opportunity for equity participation or provide them with projects that help improve their livelihood but also provide a source of revenue to fund overall Muslim economic development. However, Muslim scholars found that investment of zakat may make the payment legally vulnerable from the Shari>ca (Islamic law) point of view. Thus, many fatwa>s and views have been expressed by the Muslim scholars as guidelines to ensure that the investment activities conform to Shari>ca. This study examines contemporary policy and practice in the management of zakat investment in Malaysia, particularly at two zakat institutions: Majlis Agama Islam Wilayah Persekutuan and Lembaga Zakat Selangor. These two institutions are selected because they are the most vibrant zakat institutions in the country in terms of zakat revenue and they also are the most active in investing zakat. Given the many background complaints about the institutions’ inefficiencies in managing zakat particularly the large amount of undistributed zakat, it is thus pertinent to analyze the compliancy of these investment activities with the principles and purposes of zakat. The study finds that these institutions accordingly have moulded their investment activities not only to observe the principles of zakat but also according to the modern changes in the administration of zakat in the country as well as to cater for the recipients’ current needs. The study also finds that various policies have been set up to guide the management of these investment activities. Still, there remain numerous possibilities for improving these further.

Three main components represent the pillars of this research: Human Economic Security (HES), Islamic economics, and the Malaysian economy and policies addressing economic insecurities. HES is part of Human Security (HS), and both are presented in this research from the Islamic perspective to relate to both Islamic economics and Malaysia, the constitutionally Islamic country. To reach a conclusion regarding the subject, the researcher asks the question: "Can Malaysia actualize HES on the bases of equity and justice for all its citizens through enlarging and enhancing the performance of the Islamic Voluntary Economic Sector (IVES) institutions, specifically the redistributive institution of zakat?" The methodological approach of this research is basically a qualitative one. In the concluding chapter the researcher finds that Islamic economics could grow to become more social, more so through the growth of the IVES. However, a steady growth of the sector is not enough to actualize HES noticeably in Malaysian contexts. A more robust growth rate in the sector is conditional to decisive government interventions that favor the growth of the IVES. / 博士(グローバル社会研究) / Doctor of Philosophy in Global Society Studies / 同志社大学 / Doshisha University

Au cours de ces dernières décennies, le concept de la compétitivité s'est établi comme un mot-clé important dans la vie sociale, à l’échelle micro-économique et surtout macro-économique. Au regard d’une mondialisation grandissante et de l'expansion des marchés mondiaux, la compétitivité peut quelque fois se limiter à l’aspect purement économique et commercial. Alors que l’examen des différents défis économiques, sociaux et environnementaux qui préoccupent de nos jours l’humanité conduit à reconsidérer les modèles d’évaluation de la croissance économique adoptée, à reconnaitre leurs limites et à apporter un jugement critique sur l’évaluation de la compétitivité. Ce travail se propose donc d’explorer quelques possibilités de l’intégration contemporaine de principes « éthiques » dans le concept de la compétitivité macroéconomique. Prenant en compte la dynamique du concept de la compétitivité, la thèse analyse l’histoire et l’évolution de cette notion. L’analyse engage alors une approche théorique, ensuite une étude comparée des différents indices d’évaluation de la compétitivité. L’objectif est d’examiner comment des principes éthiques peuvent être intégrés pour la mesure et l’évaluation de la compétitivité des pays, c’est-à-dire comment elle pourrait être évaluée au-delà du PIB et des résultats commerciaux et comment elle rejoint également la préoccupation pour les inégalités, la pauvreté, le changement climatique dans des domaines aussi différents que la santé, l’éducation, l’eau et l’agriculture …Les objectifs de la Charia (Maqasid Charia) constituent une assise convenable pour construire un nouvel indice de compétitivité éthique, permettant ainsi la contribution de différents pays, même non musulmans, à chacun des objectifs de la Charia. / Throughout the past decades, competitiveness was established as an important concept in social life, at micro and especially macro levels. With globalization and the expansion of global markets, competitiveness can sometimes be limited to purely economic and commercial dimensions. While examining various current economic, social and environmental challenges that affect today’s economy and humanity, the thesis reconsiders the economic growth assessment models adopted, to recognize their limits and put forward critical judgment on the assessment of competitiveness. This study develops, therefore, an exploration of some possibilities of contemporary integration of "ethical" principles into the concept of macroeconomic competitiveness.Taking into account the dynamics of the concept of competitiveness, the thesis analyzes the history and evolution of this concept. The analysis puts forward a theoretical approach, followed by a comparative study of different indices for assessing competitiveness. The aim is to examine how ethical principles are integrated to measure countries' competitiveness. That is, how competitiveness could be evaluated beyond the GDP and trade outcomes and that it also incorporates the measures of inequality, poverty, climate change, health, education, water, agriculture etc. The objectives of Shariah (Maqasid al Shariah) present a suitable foundation to build a new ethical competitiveness index that measures countries’ contribution to the objectives of the Shariah.