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Contribution short abstract

The presentation talks about the work of Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) and the Ismaili Imamate in Portugal to demonstrate how Islam does not only inspire development work but rather becomes a development practice, which aims to achieve pluralism and cosmopolitanism in Portugal.

Contribution long abstract

My research studies the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) and the Ismaili Imamate in Portugal, to explore how the meaning of religion, development and their relationship evolves and is redefined in practice. By presenting my ethnographic findings of AKDN’s socioeconomic and cultural projects, I demonstrate how Islam, and specifically Ismaili values, are put into action and translated into programs that aim to foster pluralism and cosmopolitanism in Portugal.

In doing so, I argue how Islam does not only inspire conventional development practices of aid – it rather becomes a development practice itself. AKDN in Portugal approaches development as a pursuit for pluralist and cosmopolitan society, which fulfils two key ethical imperatives of Islam: common humanity and human dignity, rooted in the fundamental Islamic principle of Tawhid. In this way, religion and development emerge as two sides of the same coin.

The analysis is thus aligned with what scholars like Deneulin and Rakodi (2011) and Petersen (2014) stated – the study of Islam and development cannot simply be about why Islam encourages aid or charity. Instead, how and when things become ‘Islam’ and what kind of Islam is being constructed through development practices. This is a key transition in the study of religion and development where preconceived dichotomies are being challenged, and religion and development become inextricably intertwined. It further shows how Islam and development are being practiced interchangeably in postsecular and postmodern context, inviting scholars to explore the implications of such a practice, particularly amidst increasing cultural polarizations worldwide.