In order to cushion the biting effects of the economic hardship many families in Nigeria are passing through, Jaiz Charity and Development Foundation has enriched no fewer than 70 poor Nigerians with cheques worth fifteen million naira to attend to their critical needs.

At the 8th edition of the annual Zakat distribution, held in Lagos, the beneficiaries received items such as four deep freezers, three industrial sewing machines, three straight sewing machines, two gas cookers, two generators, two laptops, and a grinding machine, among others.

The Executive Officer of the Foundation, Dr. Imam Abdullahi Shuaib, said the Foundation recorded a 66.7 percent improvement in the Zakat fund disbursed this year as against the 50 percent increase witnessed last year.

According to him, during this period last year, the foundation disbursed Zakat both in kind and cash to the tune of Nine Million Naira (N9,000,000) to 42 beneficiaries.

“At this gathering, the foundation is set to distribute Zakat funds as well as items worth Fifteen Million Naira (N15,000,000) to a total number of 70 beneficiaries.
“This accomplishment could not have been possible without the patronage of our existing and new Zakat payers, who have consistently reposed their confidence in us to distribute their Zakat efficiently to deserving beneficiaries. We ask Allah to continue to bless the Zakat payers’ wealth, families and enterprises as they continue to support the cause of Allah,” he said.

Dr. Shuaib explained further: “At Jaiz Foundation, we are concerned by the worsening living conditions of the weak, poor, needy, ill-treated and vulnerable among men, women, and children, whose cry is: Our Lord! Rescue us from this town whose people are wrongdoers; and raise for us from You (one who will provide us socio-economic well-being) protection and raise for us from You one who will help (us to achieve it)” Q4:75

“In light of this, I am delighted to mention that Jaiz Foundation took it upon itself to respond to the clarion call of the weak, poor and needy. As usual, the Foundation is always inspired to wipe off the tears and soothe the pains of the aforementioned people.”

Renowned as Nigeria’s leading nonprofit foundation championing formal collection and distribution of zakat, the third pillar of Islam, the foundation’s goal, according to Dr. Shuaib, is to empower weak and vulnerable Nigerians.

He, therefore, urged the beneficiaries to utilise the zakat proceeds effectively.
He said, “It is important to note that the goal of this intervention is to empower the weak among us to engage them in productive ventures to make them self-reliant and financially independent in meeting their daily needs, among others. Therefore, we urge all the beneficiaries to utilize either the zakat fund or items effectively so that the purpose of the intervention is attained in the coming days or months inshaa’ Allah.

“Conclusively, on behalf of Jaiz Foundation, I sincerely appreciate all our guests, collaborating organizations and media partners for your support at all times. I pray Allah to reward you all abundantly, both in this world and the hereafter.”
The Grand Mufti of Conference of Islamic Organisations, CIO, Sheikh Dhikrullah Shafi’i said the zakat institution was established to eradicate poverty among mankind.

According to him, Islam is the only religion ordained by Allah for mankind. It is established upon five pillars, out of which the third pillar is zakat, meant to eradicate poverty. It is also a means towards economic empowerment and societal reformation.

The revered Islamic scholar encouraged those eligible to pay their zakat while also advising the administrators and recipients.
“Those eligible are expected to remove zakat from their wealth as and when due. The administrators should also ensure that only eligible beneficiaries enjoy it, just like Jaiz Charity Foundation screens people that qualify to receive zakat. They have been doing a great job in the screening exercise which I am also part of. The process is transparent. They deserve the praise.

“The beneficiaries should use the zakat proceeds for the right purpose without diverting it for another purpose, with the intention that they too will pay zakat sooner or later. It’s an amanah (trust) and Almighty Allah will ask every beneficiary on the day of judgement (what you did with the zakat given to you). Also, beneficiaries should strive not to always request for zakat but to be in a position to give it out.”

Sheikh Shafi’i underscored the need to encourage the rich Muslims among the Ummah to pay zakat to reliable foundations such as Jaiz. “We should also encourage the rich to invest in waqf (endowment fund), because it is something that is not common in our society,” he said.

One of the special guests at the event, the Executive Director (ED) of Zakat and Sadaqat Foundation, Prince Sulaiman Olagunju praised Jaiz charity foundation team for putting smiles on the faces of the poor despite the limited resources at their disposal.

He said, when it comes to zakat collection in this country, Jaiz charity is a force to be reckoned with and looking at what it has done today, you can only but rate the foundation as one of the best in Nigeria.

Prince Olagunju commended Jaiz for putting mechanism in place to monitor the impact of zakat collected by beneficiaries. According to him, “We don’t give zakat to people without putting monitoring and evaluation system in place. It’s the starting point and Jaiz must be commended for doing that. The foundation has a form the beneficiaries will fill having collected the items.

The next thing is monitoring system to ensure that those things are not diverted. Every foundation including mine (Zakat and Sadaqat) has the system in place. That’s why we will continue to monitor and sensitise them on the effective use of the proceeds,” he noted.