Navigating traditions and modernity : the development of halal standards project in the Gambia

Abstract

This thesis explores how the Gambia Standards Bureau navigates the intersection of tradition and modernity in halal regulation and the global standardization of halal certification. The study focused on the role of the Gambia Standards Bureau (TGSB) in standardization of halal in The Gambia. it examines how state agency of TGSB incorporate international standards such as those of the OIC/SMIIC halal standards into a society where halal has historically been governed by informal religious authority. The researcher employed a qualitative case study through conducted an interviews and document analysis. The findings reveal how halal standardization and certification have evolved into a technoscientific and bureaucratic process, shifting the monopoly of halal authority from local Islamic scholars to the administrative and technical apparatus of the state. The study situates this transformation within broader theoretical frameworks of globalization, institutional isomorphism, moral economy, and maslahah, arguing that halal governance in The Gambia reflects a hybrid model shaped by political pluralism, religious prerogatives, and the country’s economic development dimensions. This thesis fills a gap in broader discussions within halal studies by offering the first in-depth institutional analysis of halal standardization in The Gambia, the Islamization of knowledge, religious commodification, and the bureaucratization of halal governance by the Gambia Standards Bureau.