PMA and Association of Banks in Palestine Fund Banking and Financial Training Program for Judges

As part of their efforts to build the judicial capacity in the area of banking and finance, and in cooperation with the Supreme Judicial Council and the Palestinian Judicial Institute, the PMA and the Association of Banks in Palestine (ABP) jointly funded the training program on banking and finance held in the Grand Millennium Hotel in Amman, Jordan. The 4-day program was attended by 16 judges from different courts and was supervised and organized by the Palestinian Banking Institute (PBI) in coordination with the Palestinian Judicial Institute.

In this context, Governor of the PMA, Dr Jihad Al-Wazir, emphasized the keenness of the PMA, the ABP and other related parties to consolidate the competence of the judges in areas of banking and finance outlined in the program for the end purpose of ensuring the soundness and stability of the banking sector. Dr Al-Wazir added that the importance of this program, as well as other similar programs, emanates from its ability to build the capacities of judges in relation to rulings on banking and finance-related disputes, in a manner which contributes to protecting the rights of both the banking service consumer and the institution offering that service. He added that such programs are regarded as fundamental to the development of the legal and regulatory infrastructure in Palestine to help expedite legal proceedings which are based on sound foundations. Dr Al-Wazir also alluded to the near termination of his second term as Governor of the PMA and commended the fruitful cooperation with the Supreme Judicial Council over the past 8-year period.

The training program was delivered by a select number of banking and legal experts from Jordan. The program addressed the topics of: banking accounts, bank guarantees, letters of guarantee, letters of credit, commercial papers and cheques, execution of deeds in lieu of foreclosure, actions for accounting and Islamic financing formulas. An interactive approach was adopted to deliver the program using discussions and case studies so as to come up with the best results and recommendations.