Sahel International Journal of Islamic Studies and Islamic Finance

The Sahel International Journal of Islamic Studies and Islamic Finance (SIJISIF) is an international, peer-reviewed, open-access journal publishing rigorous scholarship across Islamic studies, Islamic economics and Islamic finance. The journal provides a forum for scholars, researchers, educators, finance professionals, Shariah scholars, policymakers and practitioners to examine Islam’s intellectual traditions, historical experiences, contemporary societies and ethical approaches to economic and financial life.

SIJISIF welcomes theoretically informed, methodologically sound and ethically conducted research from all regions of the world. It has a particular interest in Africa and the Sahel, including scholarship that places experiences from these regions in comparative and global perspective. The journal welcomes diverse scholarly schools and methods and does not privilege any country, institution, madhhab, methodological tradition or political position.

About the Journal

SIJISIF is an interdisciplinary scholarly journal established to advance research and informed debate on Islamic texts, thought, law, history, societies, ethics, economics and finance. It publishes work that develops and evaluates interpretations and theories, produces credible empirical and historical evidence, examines institutions and practices, improves research methods and translates scholarship into responsible lessons for contemporary policy and society.

The journal brings the humanities, social sciences, law, economics and finance into constructive conversation. SIJISIF welcomes contributions from Qur’anic and Hadith studies, theology, jurisprudence, philosophy, history, education, sociology, anthropology, politics, peace and interfaith studies, Islamic economics, banking, capital markets, social finance, accounting, governance, fintech and related fields. It values textual, historical, comparative, doctrinal, legal, qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods when the selected approach is appropriate, transparent and rigorously applied.

Although SIJISIF has a distinctive commitment to research concerning Africa and the Sahel, its remit is global. The journal encourages North-South, South-South and cross-regional scholarship and seeks to counter the marginalisation of knowledge produced in developing, multilingual and conflict-affected settings. Regional or confessional relevance alone is not sufficient for publication. Every article must articulate a clear research problem, engage the relevant primary and secondary literature, employ a defensible method and make a contribution that extends beyond the immediate case.

Ownership, Management and Editorial Independence

SIJISIF is owned and published by Sahel Academic Publishing Ltd. The publisher provides administrative, production and technical support but does not determine the conclusions of articles or interfere with individual editorial decisions. The Editor-in-Chief has final responsibility for the journal’s scholarly content and acts through an Editorial Board whose members are selected for relevant expertise, integrity and diversity. Commercial considerations, advertising, sponsorship, religious affiliation and institutional relationships shall not influence editorial decisions.

Aim and Editorial Mission

SIJISIF aims to be a trusted international forum for original research and critical scholarship that advances knowledge, policy and practice in Islamic studies, Islamic economics and Islamic finance. Its editorial mission is to publish work that is intellectually serious, methodologically credible, ethically responsible, respectful of scholarly difference and accessible to both academic and professional audiences.

Objectives

SIJISIF seeks to:

1. publish original textual, historical, theoretical, legal, empirical and methodological contributions in Islamic studies and Islamic finance;
2. deepen understanding of Islamic intellectual traditions, institutions, societies, economic thought and financial practices;
3. connect classical sources and scholarly traditions with consequential contemporary questions while avoiding anachronism and unsupported claims;
4. encourage comparative, interdisciplinary and context-sensitive research;
5. strengthen the international visibility of high-quality scholarship from Africa, the Sahel and other underrepresented regions;
6. facilitate responsible knowledge exchange among scholars, Shariah experts, financial professionals, policymakers and civil society;
7. advance transparent, reproducible and ethically sound research practices; and
8. uphold editorial independence, procedural fairness and the integrity of the scholarly record.

Scope

SIJISIF considers manuscripts that make a substantive contribution within one or more of the following areas:

Qur’anic Studies and Exegesis

Qur’anic interpretation; classical and contemporary tafsir; Qur’anic sciences; textual history; language, rhetoric and hermeneutics; thematic studies; translation; reception; manuscripts; comparative exegesis; and the Qur’an’s engagement with ethical, social, legal, economic and environmental questions.

Hadith, Sunnah and Prophetic Studies

Hadith sciences; transmission, authentication and criticism; hadith collections and commentaries; Sunnah and legal reasoning; Prophetic biography; manuscript traditions; historical reception; contemporary interpretation; and the application and misuse of Prophetic traditions in public discourse.

Islamic Theology, Philosophy, Ethics and Spirituality

Aqidah and kalam; Islamic philosophy; logic and epistemology; ethics; spirituality and Sufism; intellectual history; schools of thought; moral psychology; bioethics; environmental ethics; science and religion; and classical or contemporary Muslim thought.

Islamic Law, Jurisprudence and Legal Institutions

Usul al-fiqh; substantive jurisprudence; maqasid al-Shariah; legal maxims; fatwa; comparative madhahib; family and personal-status law; constitutionalism; human rights; minority jurisprudence; courts and dispute resolution; legal pluralism; and contemporary Shariah governance.

Islamic History, Civilisation, Education and Culture

Early, medieval and modern Islamic history; African and Sahelian Muslim societies; manuscripts and scholarly networks; Islamic education; Arabic and Ajami traditions; art, architecture and material culture; literature; gender and family; migration and diaspora; heritage; and knowledge production.

Islam, Society, Politics and Interreligious Relations

Muslim societies and institutions; religion and public life; governance; citizenship; peacebuilding; conflict and violent extremism; media and digital religion; youth; gender; humanitarian action; interfaith relations; religious authority; lived Islam; and contemporary social movements.

Islamic Economics and Development

Foundations and history of Islamic economic thought; moral economy; market ethics; property and contracts; wealth distribution; poverty and inequality; development; entrepreneurship; labour; public finance; halal industries; consumer behaviour; sustainability; circular economy; and comparative economic systems.

Islamic Banking, Capital Markets and Risk Management

Islamic banking products and operations; profit-and-loss sharing; murabahah, mudarabah, musharakah, ijarah, salam and istisna’; sukuk; Islamic funds and capital markets; liquidity and monetary management; risk, stability and performance; regulation; accounting and auditing; governance; and cross-country comparative studies.

Islamic Social Finance, Insurance and Financial Inclusion

Zakat; waqf; sadaqah; qard hasan; takaful and retakaful; microfinance; cooperative finance; philanthropy; financial inclusion; poverty alleviation; humanitarian finance; impact investment; blended social finance; and institutional design and performance.

Shariah Governance, Fintech and Sustainable Finance

Shariah boards and assurance; Shariah audit and compliance; legal and regulatory frameworks; standard-setting; financial technology; digital banking and payments; crowdfunding; blockchain and digital assets; artificial intelligence; data ethics; Islamic green finance; climate finance; responsible investment; and alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals.

Submissions that are mainly devotional or polemical, lack a clear scholarly contribution, treat contested interpretations as undisputed fact, use methods that do not support their claims, promote sectarian hostility or fall outside the journal’s remit may be declined without external review.

Article Types

*Word limits normally include notes but exclude the abstract, references, tables, figures and online supplementary material. Editors may approve exceptions where justified.

Why Publish with SIJISIF?

• International and interdisciplinary readership.
• Double-anonymised peer review by subject specialists.
• Open access to the version of record immediately upon publication.
• Transparent editorial, ethics and post-publication policies.
• Particular visibility for robust scholarship from Africa and other underrepresented research settings.
• Persistent article identification and long-term digital preservation.

Journal at a Glance

Author Guidelines

General Requirements

Submissions must be original, within scope, written in clear English and not under consideration by another journal. Manuscripts should present a defined problem, an explicit contribution, an appropriate research design or interpretive method, transparent analysis and conclusions proportionate to the evidence. Authors are responsible for obtaining permission to reproduce copyrighted manuscripts, translations, images, tables or other material.

Submission Files

Authors should provide:

• a title page containing the article title, author names, affiliations, ORCID iDs where available, corresponding-author details, acknowledgements, funding, competing interests and author-contribution statement;
• an anonymised manuscript without identifying information;
• editable tables and publication-quality figure or manuscript-image files;
• supplementary files, instruments, protocols, data, code, translations or appendices where relevant;
• ethics approval and consent information where applicable; and
• a cover letter explaining the manuscript’s fit and contribution and confirming compliance with journal policies.

Manuscript Structure

Original Research Articles should normally include:

1. concise and informative title;
2. structured abstract of 200-300 words covering background or purpose, methods or approach, results or argument and conclusion;
3. four to seven keywords;
4. introduction establishing the problem, gap, contribution and research objective;
5. literature review and theoretical, conceptual, jurisprudential or interpretive framework as appropriate;
6. methodology or approach, including sources, corpus or population, selection and sampling, study context, instruments, data-collection or textual procedures, ethics and analytical strategy;
7. findings, results or analysis supported by clearly identified evidence;
8. discussion that engages relevant primary sources, previous scholarship and the historical, theological, legal, socioeconomic or financial context;
9. conclusion stating the contribution, implications, limitations and priorities for future research;
10. required declarations; and
11. references and any supplementary sources, data, instruments, translations or code.

Alternative structures are acceptable for textual, historical, philosophical, theological, jurisprudential, qualitative and doctrinal scholarship when they fit disciplinary conventions and sustain a clear scholarly argument.

Arabic, Transliteration and Primary Sources

• Arabic script may be used where it materially assists the argument; an English translation should normally accompany substantive quotations.
• Transliteration must follow one recognised academic system consistently. Commonly established English forms may be retained.
• Qur’anic citations should identify the surah name or number and verse number; the English translation used must be named.
• Hadith citations should identify the collection and include book, chapter, hadith number or another stable locator where available. Claims about authenticity must identify the grading authority or critical method.
• Classical works should be cited by author, title, editor or translator, edition, publication details, volume and page where available.
• Manuscripts and archival sources should include repository, collection, shelfmark or catalogue identifier and folio details where applicable.
• Authors must distinguish their own translations from published translations and indicate material interpretive choices.
• Honorifics may be used sparingly and consistently, but they should not replace precise scholarly citation or analysis.

Style and Presentation

• Use British English consistently, except in quotations and official titles.
• Prepare text in an editable Word-compatible format, with continuous page and line numbering.
• Define abbreviations, Arabic technical terms and financial acronyms at first use.
• Report dates using Common Era dates, with Hijri dates added where relevant and consistently converted.
• Report currencies, units, statistical symbols and decimal places consistently.
• Identify jurisdictions, institutions, standards, financial products, contracts, datasets, study sites and source editions precisely.
• State the software and version used for empirical analysis where relevant.
• Report coefficients, uncertainty measures, sample sizes and exact probability values wherever appropriate.
• Identify tables and figures in numerical order and cite each in the text.
• Provide informative titles, notes, sources and accessible descriptions where needed.
• Avoid sectarian, derogatory, triumphalist or stigmatising language and represent contested scholarly positions accurately and respectfully.
• Avoid claims of religious consensus, legal validity, causality or financial performance that are unsupported by the cited evidence and method.

Referencing

SIJISIF uses APA Style, 7th edition for secondary sources, adapted where necessary for classical Islamic, Arabic, manuscript and legal materials. Authors must ensure that every in-text citation appears in the reference list and every listed reference is cited. Include DOIs as https://doi.org/… links where available. References must be accurate, traceable and appropriately weighted towards primary sources and relevant scholarship. Fabricated, irrelevant or citation-manipulated references constitute misconduct.

Required Declarations for Published Articles

Every article should carry the following headings, using “Not applicable” or “None declared” where appropriate:

• Ethics approval and consent to participate
• Consent for publication
• Competing interests
• Funding
• Author contributions
• Acknowledgements
• Data availability
• Materials and code availability
• Preregistration or protocol registration
• Use of artificial intelligence tools

Submission Checklist

Before submitting, the corresponding author should confirm that:

1. the manuscript is original, within scope and not under consideration elsewhere;
2. all authors qualify for authorship, approved the manuscript and agreed to submission;
3. the review manuscript is anonymised and the title page is separate;
4. the abstract, keywords, main text, references, tables, figures and declarations are complete;
5. methods, ethics, consent and reporting-guideline requirements have been addressed;
6. data, code and materials are deposited or restrictions are explained in a Data Availability Statement;
7. funding, competing interests, related works, preprints and AI use are disclosed;
8. every citation and reference has been checked for accuracy and relevance;
9. permission has been obtained for third-party copyrighted material; and
10. all files are readable, editable where required and free of identifying metadata in the anonymised version.