Determined by many factors such as existing cultural conditions, education, and aesthetics innovation capacity is one of the critical dimensions for economic development. Therefore, by analyzing the factors that promote or constrain the innovation capacity of a society could benefit the economic and social welfare. For the very reason, in this paper, we tried to assess the role of culture in determining innovation capacity of a society, since it is believed that the culture is matter in terms of improving the innovation capacity of a society. For this purpose, we employed Hofstede Index, which is used to measure cultural differences across countries to explore the relationships between culture and innovation. Moreover, inasmuch as innovation capacity is crucial for economic development, we need to consider these questions: could we improve the innovational capacity of a society? If yes, what are the strategies or methods to do it? Although formation of a culture supporting creativity or learning to be creative is tough issue, many scholars claim that it could be learned by following some strategies. Therefore, one may conclude that creativity is a skill that can be developed and a process that can be managed

Islamic banking has come to the forefront as being one of the fastest growing branch of the global financial industry in recent years. In this study we evaluate whether coexistence of Islamic and conventional banks promote financial stability. In this respect, we evaluate two types of financial systems: (1) A system solely comprised of conventional banks, (2) a dual system in which conventional and Islamic banks coexist and interact with each other. Accordingly, we design two agent-based models representing aforementioned systems and examine possible contagious effects and causes of bank failures by employing the volatility spillover methodology. We find that Islamic banks greatly promote stability by providing liquidity during financial shocks and create more liquidity per asset compared to conventional banks. We also find that they tend to hold more cash than conventional banks, which cushion the effects of a possible liquidity squeeze. Conventional banks, on the other hand, tend to have reserve deficits, which intensify during shock periods. We conclude that coexistence of both bank types creates a win-win situation and contributes to financial stability.

The notion behind Islamic finance is providing alternative Shariah-compliant financial services and products for those who do not willing to access conventional finance as it contravenes Shariah principles. Currently, Islamic finance is expanding throughout Muslim and non-Muslim countries. One of the most critical challenges of the Islamic financial sector is the extent of the compliance of Islamic finance practices with Shariah principles. Therefore, there should be a control mechanism for ensuring the compliance of the products and services provided by Islamic financial institutions with Shariah principles. Scholars argue that a Shariah governance framework should be applied by institutions engaged in Islamic finance in countries where Islamic finance is being practiced. Shariah governance framework is mainly categorized into two approaches centralized and decentralized Shariah governance framework. The availability of a centralized Shariah governance framework is essential in ensuring the application of Islamic finance in accordance with Shariah principles. Ethiopia is one of the countries that accommodated the application of Islamic finance through exclusively interest-free banking windows by conventional banks in 2011 and fully-fledged interest-free banks in late 2019. However, the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) did not specify any Shariah governance framework in any of its legislations. The unavailability of an established Shariah governance framework may expose the sector to Shariah non-compliance risk. This study investigates how to ensure Ethiopia's Islamic finance applications' compliance with the Shariah principles. Semi-structured interviews and document studies were conducted with 15 respondents, including experts in Islamic finance, Shariah scholars, and Islamic finance practitioners, to collect the needed data for this endeavor. The findings indicate that interest-free banks, especially interest-free banking windows, do not give the necessary attention to the issue of the Shariah governance framework. The presumed manifestations of Shariah compliance in Ethiopia are having Shariah advisory committee, using Arabic words and names for their products and services, declaring they are following the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI), Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) standards, and participating in corporate social activities. However, these claims are insufficient to argue that their products and services are Shariah-compliant, as long as an external authorized body should oversight and control their application. In addition, the results indicate that adapting the AAOIFI standards to the extent of industry development is recommended to ensure Shariah compliance in Ethiopia. Besides, considering responsible stakeholders in ensuring Shariah compliance, government/NBE and financial institutions engaged in Islamic finance are identified as primary stakeholders. On the other hand, the Ethiopian Islamic Affairs Supreme Council (EIASC), religious scholars and institutional Shariah advisors, interest-free professional associations, academicians in Islamic economics and finance, and educational institutions are considered secondary stakeholders. In addition, the findings also indicate that the policymakers' approaches of Türkiye, Malaysia, Kenya, and South Africa to the Islamic finance industry could be the best model for policymakers in Ethiopia. Establishing a centralized Shariah advisory committee under the NBE is recommended to ensure the compliance of interest-free finance applications with Shariah principles in Ethiopia. To this endeavor, all stakeholders such as government/NBE, financial institutions engaged in the Islamic finance industry, EIASC, religious scholars and institutional Shariah advisors, interest-free professional associations, academicians in Islamic economics and finance, and educational institutions should play a significant role by fulfilling their respective responsibilities.

Islamic finance operates as an alternative system meeting the investment requirements of individuals adhering to Islamic beliefs. While conventional finance prioritizes stock exchanges facilitating small-scale investments, challenges arise for Muslims investing their savings in stocks due to potential conflicts between companies' activities and revenues and religious principles. This situation prompts Islamic scholars to deliberate on the permissibility of purchasing specific company stocks. Various scholars and Shariah boards have established precise criteria for determining the permissibility of buying a company's stocks, leading to the development of indexes aimed at identifying compliant companies. Shariah-compliant stocks or companies adhere to the principles of Shariah law, governing various life aspects, including financial and economic activities. This study investigates Shariah screening methods, exploring their rationale, foundations, and potential religious influences, particularly focusing on six prominent Islamic indices. The study investigates Shariah's justifications and motives behind these methods, discussing their evaluation through different standards. Despite scholars' varying opinions and evolving methodologies, the primary objective remains consistent: to facilitate halal income for Muslim investors while maintaining Islamic ethical principles in financial practices.

Fractional reserve banking is a system in which banks extend loans by creating credit/deposit money, and which can be considered the basis of modern financial architecture. Nevertheless, it has been criticised because of its inherently weak and fragile structure in terms of financial and economic stability. As a theoretical solution, full reserve banking has been supported in academic circles, with many technical variations. However, Islamic economics can help to maintain financial and economic stability with its original institution of waqf. Besides performing social functions, waqf also undertakes financial intermediary functions and preserved financial stability in the period of the Ottoman Empire. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of fractional reserve banking on economic stability and to make a comparison with full reserve banking to observe its potential as an alternative solution. The study also examines the efficiency of the Islamic social and economic institution of waqf in maintaining economic stability in both fractional and full reserve systems. The results demonstrate that full reserve banking is a promising approach to maintaining economic stability and that waqf enhances economic stability in both banking systems.