Alexandria, VA | January 24–25, 2026, Washington University of Science and Technology (WUST) proudly co-organized the International Conference on Business Innovation for Inclusive Development (ICBIID 2026), a landmark two-day international event held at the International Islamic University Chittagong (IIUC), Kumira, Chattogram, Bangladesh. Bringing together academics, researchers, professionals, policymakers, and students from across Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Oceania, and the Americas, ICBIID 2026 served as a truly global forum for advancing business knowledge in service of a more equitable, innovative, and sustainable world.

ICBIID 2026 was organized by the Faculty of Business Studies (FBS) in collaboration with the Center for Research and Publication (CRP) at IIUC, with Washington University of Science and Technology (WUST), Virginia, USA serving as a named co-organizing institution, alongside co-organizers from Malaysia, Indonesia, Pakistan, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Bangladesh. WUST's co-organizer role reflects its expanding presence as a partner of choice for internationally significant research events across disciplines.

A Premier Forum for Business, Innovation, and Inclusive Development

ICBIID 2026 was convened under the belief that business, when approached with vision and integrity, can be a powerful engine for inclusive growth and human development. In an era of rapid technological disruption, climate urgency, and widening inequality, the conference created a collaborative space for knowledge sharing, cultural exchange, and future-focused thinking across the full breadth of business and management scholarship.

Over two days, participants engaged in four plenary sessions and three rounds of parallel paper presentation sessions, featuring contributions from scholars representing Bangladesh, Malaysia, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, New Zealand, India, Uganda, Nigeria, and beyond. The program was organized into seven thematic tracks:

• Management, HRM & Organizational Behaviour, exploring leadership, workplace dynamics, organizational culture, and human capital development

• Economics, Sustainable Development & Inclusive Growth, addressing macroeconomic policy, green finance, blue economy, and sustainable development pathways

• Finance, Islamic Finance, Corporate Governance & Accountability, covering Islamic financial instruments, ESG practices, corporate governance, and accountability frameworks

• Marketing and Consumer Insights, examining digital marketing, consumer behavior, brand equity, and mobile commerce

• Digitalization, Technology & Innovation, showcasing AI adoption, digital transformation in SMEs, fintech, and fourth industrial revolution readiness

• Operation, Supply Chain & Environmental Strategy, addressing circular economy, green supply chains, IoT-enabled sustainability, and logistics management

• Emerging and Interdisciplinary Areas, fostering cross-disciplinary dialogue and novel perspectives at the frontiers of business research

Distinguished Keynote and Invited Speakers

ICBIID 2026 was graced by an internationally distinguished lineup of keynote and invited speakers whose research spans Islamic economics, sustainable finance, organizational behavior, and inclusive business development:

Keynote Speakers:

• Prof. Dr. Masudul Alam Choudhury, Retired Professor, Cape Breton University, Canada; Adjunct, Faculty of Economics, Trisakti University, Indonesia, "Competition or Cooperation in Islamic Socio-Economic Methodology"

• Prof. Dato' Dr. Mustafa Bin Mohd Hanefah, Faculty of Economics and Muamalat, Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM), Malaysia, "Holistic Management and Its Impact on Sustainable Economic Development"

• Prof. Dr. Masood Sarwar Awan, Pro Vice-Chancellor, University of Sargodha, Pakistan, "Innovating for Inclusion: Transforming Business to Empower Communities in South Asia"

• Prof. Dr. Jamaliah Said, Former Director, Accounting Research Institute (ARI), Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), Malaysia, "Islamic Social Enterprise for Business Innovation and Inclusive Development: Case Study of a Small Village in Malaysia"

• Prof. Dr. Fauzilah Binti Salleh, Faculty of Business and Management, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA), Malaysia, "From Principles to Impact: The Emergence of Shari'ah-Compliant Social Finance for Socio-Economic Sustainability"

• Prof. Dr. Md Aminul Islam, Deanship of Research Development, Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

• Prof. Dr. Shariq Nisar, Rizvi Institute of Management Studies and Research, India

Invited Speakers:

• Assoc. Prof. Dr. Siddig Balal Ibrahim, Dean, College of Administrative & Financial Sciences, Gulf University, Kingdom of Bahrain, "From Entrepreneurial Leadership to Sustainable SME Performance: The Strategic Role of Financial Inclusion"

• Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mezbahuddin Chowdhury, UC Business School, University of Canterbury, New Zealand, "Navigating the Future: The Research Trajectory in Organizational Resilience"

• Dr. Muhammad Nazmul Hoque, Faculty of Accountancy, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), Malaysia, "Sustainable Financing of Higher Education Institutions through Waqf (Endowment): The Malaysian Experience and Its Application at the IIUC"

• Prof. Dr. Tanvir Mohammad Hayder Arif, Director, Research and Publication Cell, University of Chittagong, Bangladesh, "Empowering Sustainable Development through a Circular Blue Economy: A Framework for Bangladesh and South Asia in the Bay of Bengal"

• Assoc. Prof. Dr. Norhayati Rafida Abdul Rahim, Deputy Dean, Faculty of Leadership and Management, USIM, Malaysia, "From Communication Gaps to Digital Trust: Developing an AI-Powered Just-in-Time Internal Halal Auditing in Malaysia"

• Prof. Dr. Md. Monirul Islam, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST), Bangladesh, "Internationalization of Born Global SMEs: A Study on Software Firms"

Strong Leadership and Institutional Organization

The conference was organized under the leadership of Prof. Dr. Mohammad Aktaruzzaman Khan, Dean of the Faculty of Business Studies at IIUC, as Conference Chair, alongside Prof. Dr. Muhammad Azizul Hoque, Director of the Center for Research and Publication, and Prof. Dr. Nazamul Hoque and Prof. Dr. Mohammad Nazim Uddin as Co-Chairs. The Organizing Committee's meticulous planning delivered a seamless two-day program of plenary sessions, parallel paper presentations, and networking opportunities across multiple venues on the IIUC campus.

The conference's advisory board included senior IIUC leadership at the highest levels, including the Vice Chancellor, Treasurer, and Chairman of the Finance Committee, underscoring the strategic importance IIUC placed on this international academic event.

An International Paper Program

ICBIID 2026 attracted a rich body of scholarly submissions from researchers across multiple countries. Accepted papers were distributed across 19 parallel sessions over two days, covering topics ranging from Islamic finance and ESG frameworks, to AI adoption in banking and accounting, to green supply chain management, circular economy strategy, and macroeconomic determinants of growth in developing economies. The diversity of contributions, from theoretical frameworks to empirical country-level studies, reflected the conference's genuinely multidisciplinary and globally inclusive character.

The conference concluded with a formal Closing Ceremony and Conference Dinner at Hotel Agrabad, Chittagong, a fitting celebration of the scholarship, connections, and ideas generated over two remarkable days.

Publication and Academic Impact

Selected papers presented at ICBIID 2026 will be submitted for inclusion in a portfolio of internationally recognized publication outlets, including:

• Journal of Financial Reporting and Accounting (ISI, Scopus, ABDC), Emerald Publishing

• Management and Accounting Review (Scopus, ABDC)

• Journal of Critical Realism in Socio-Economic (JOCRISE)

• IIUC Business Review, the research journal of the Faculty of Business Studies, IIUC

• IIUC Studies, a multidisciplinary journal

This multi-outlet publication model ensures that research presented at ICBIID 2026 reaches a wide range of scholarly audiences, from business and accounting researchers to development economists and interdisciplinary scholars.

Strengthening WUST's Business Research Engagement

ICBIID 2026 represents an important expansion of WUST's collaborative research footprint into the field of business and management, a domain central to the university's School of Business, which offers programs in business administration and emphasizes real-world application and global perspective.

Through its co-organizer role, WUST reaffirmed the breadth of its research mission: not only advancing AI, cybersecurity, and information technology, but also engaging with the business, economic, and social dimensions of a rapidly changing world. The conference's emphasis on inclusive development, Islamic finance, sustainable business practices, and entrepreneurship resonates deeply with WUST's own commitment to education that creates value, for graduates, for institutions, and for the communities they serve.

WUST is proud to have stood alongside IIUC and the broader community of co-organizing institutions in making ICBIID 2026 a success, and looks forward to continued collaboration as this important conference series grows in its global impact.

For more information about ICBIID 2026, visit icbiid.iiuc.ac.bd | To learn more about research at WUST, visit research.wust.edu