Syed Nawab Haider Naqvi, a prominent Islamic economic thinker of the contemporary era, was born on July 11, 1935 in India and grew up in an environment that highly valued education and intellectual thought. After the partition of India, his family migrated to Pakistan, a new country formed on Islamic principles. From a young age, Naqvi showed a deep interest in science, especially in the social and economic fields. The experience of living in two countries with strong historical backgrounds influenced him to see economics as a process involving human behavior and economic activity.
Naqvi's keen interest led him to pursue higher education in economics at Yale University, Princeton University, and Harvard University, USA. The experience of studying in America gave him a deep insight into modern economic theory. However, he maintained the view that morality and Islamic values should be an integral part of economics. Upon his return to Pakistan, Naqvi began teaching at several prominent universities and became active in policy development, through his position as Director of the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE).
Naqvi plays a major role in formulating economic policies that favor the poor and vulnerable groups. According to him, economic science is a tool to realize justice “adl wa al-ihsan”, and often criticizes economic systems that only focus on growth, but ignore social welfare. For him, economic growth must be in line with the principles of justice for society. According to Naqvi, the state has an essential function to ensure this justice is realized. The state must be actively involved in the economy, not only as a regulator, but also as an actor.
Naqvi puts forward three ideas, First, the nationalization of the banking sector by aligning finance with Islamic principles, such as the prohibition of usury. Second, public works programs to create jobs and ensure equitable distribution of resources. Third, he emphasized social justice for people before the law because Islam views all people as equal before God.
In addition, the economic performance of a society is considered inseparable from its moral philosophy. Naqvi asserts that there is no moral vacuum in the social and economic spheres, which then formulates the principles of Islamic ethics that serve as the foundation for a just and humane economy into four main axioms.
First, unity (Tawhid), where everything comes from one source of creation, namely Allah SWT. In economics, this means that all people should be treated equally and fairly. Second, freedom is given to humans to act according to their will, but this freedom must be guided by ethics, so as not to damage social and economic balance.
Third, responsibility for each of his actions and choices, which means that each individual must ensure that his actions do not harm others or society in general in the economic context. Fourth, balance in economic life, the balance that exists in the universe must be reflected in human behavior, both in individual and collective contexts.
His thinking in integrating Islamic ethical values into contemporary economic theory is contained in the work “Ethics and Economics: An Islamic Synthesis” (1981). In addition, Naqvi wrote many books and articles on economic reform, development policy, and the role of the state in creating social justice. Through his works, Naqvi successfully integrated Islamic teachings into modern economic theory. His thoughts on social justice, the role of the state, and individual responsibility in economics remain relevant today. Not only relevant for Muslims, but also for the global community.
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