Usage of Zakat Collections

Madam, zakat is not used to fund the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore's (MUIS) operating expenditure. MUIS funds its operating expenditure from its General Endowment Fund. The Fund has a number of income sources, including property, inheritance and investment income, and fees for services such as Halal certification. Zakat funds are not part of the General Endowment Fund and are separately accounted.

The amount of zakat collected in 2013 was $28.4 million. The collection for 2014 has yet to be confirmed through audit.

Zakat funds collected are channelled toward disbursements, provision of programmes and services, and their operating costs to serve the beneficiaries, in accordance to the eight categories or Asnafs prescribed by Muslim Law.

In 2013, about $11 million or 40% was disbursed to the needy through direct financial assistance and empowerment programmes. These empowerment programmes provide holistic intervention for zakat recipients to improve their employability and gain other life skills. MUIS helped 5,263 families in 2013 through direct financial assistance, which supplements the assistance provided by national schemes. MUIS also runs an Empowerment Partnership Scheme (EPS) to help zakat-receiving families achieve self-reliance. Since its inception in 2004, 595 of the 847 families on this scheme had successfully graduated from it and no longer require MUIS' financial assistance.

Madam, another 40% of the zakat in 2013 was used to support our mosques and madrasahs, through grants, programmes and funding for the training of madrasah teachers, mosque religious officers, volunteers and youth development officers.

The remaining zakat was used for dakwah, which is propagation, and public education, the development of Islamic education, and the funding of Amil administration – Amils are those who collect zakat – as well as assistance for Muslim converts.

I have two supplementary questions. First, given that there is an increase in the amount of zakat collected, what could have contributed to this increase in zakat collection? It is necessary for MUIS to identify what are the key success factors that led to the increase in zakat collection.

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Secondly, given the increase in zakat collection, will MUIS be reviewing either the income criteria to enable more needy families to benefit or the quantum given to needy families so that it would be of better help to them?

I thank the Member for the two questions. Certainly, there are many factors that would have contributed to the success of zakat collection in Singapore, but what comes to my mind are two possible factors. Rising affluence within the Malay/Muslim community is, in fact, a reflection of zakat collection. As more Malays do well professionally through the educational system, we will be able to increase wealth in the community. But more importantly, the awareness programme that MUIS has conducted for many years to show how zakat funds which have collected had been used, have resulted in a lot of Muslim professionals' willingness to step forward and show their generosity because everything that is collected from zakat goes back to the community. So, I think these are the two factors – mainly affluence and awareness of how the funds have been utilised.

The Member's second question was something which I have replied to earlier. We will continue to review the scheme, especially the criteria for low-income families — and I mentioned earlier that we have just revised it last year — and we will continue to do so recognising that not only do we have more funds but, at the same time, families may face difficulties, and there could be differences in terms of their income and cost of living. So, we will continue to do so because the real purpose of zakat is to benefit the community and we will continue to do so to make sure that no low-income families are left out from this scheme entirely.

A supplementary question, Mdm Speaker. I would like to ask the Minister if the recipients of the zakat donations are excluded from the regular assistance elsewhere, or can they also tap on the national schemes.

Again, as I have mentioned in my reply, the strategy that we have adopted is really to make sure that everyone who needs help tap on the national schemes because that is also something which they are entitled to. Zakat comes in to complement. But if for some reason or another, they are not entitled to some of the schemes, we will continue to assist them. There is a whole range of zakat assistance programmes from long term to short term. As I have mentioned in my response to the earlier supplementary question, we will make sure that no Muslim family who are in need will be left out, so we will do our best to assist them as much as possible.

The accounts will show that there will be instances where we may not be able to disburse entirely within one year, but the money will be kept in the zakat funds. Whatever it is, basically, it will always be kept in the zakat funds.