As 26 Countries to Attend World Zakat Forum 2020

Jakarta, MINA – As many as 1,282 zakat activists from zakat management organizations in 26 countries participated in the 2020 World Zakat Forum (WZF) International Conference which will be held online and broadcasted live through the BAZNAS TV Youtube channel, Monday (November 30) and Tuesday (December 1).

Apart from participating countries, the National Zakat Agency (BAZNAS) throughout Indonesia will also attend the event, academics and researchers, the Amil Zakat Institute, non-governmental organizations, representatives of multinational institutions, students and the general public.

This conference is planned to be opened directly by the Vice President K.H. Ma’ruf Amin accompanied by the Secretary General of the World Zakat Forum, Prof. Bambang Sudibyo. It will be attended the ranks of ministers who are also speakers at this annual forum including the Minister of Religion of the Republic of Indonesia, General TNI (Ret.) Fachrul Razi, and the Minister of Finance, Sri Mulyani Indrawati.

In addition, there will be also speakers, the Minister of Finance of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed Al-Jadaan bin Abdullah AlJadaan, Minister of Social Development of the Kingdom of Jordan, Ayman Riyad Said Al Mufleh, and Minister of Islamic Affairs of the Republic of Maldives, Dr. Ahmed Zahir, and also the President of IsDB, Dr. Bandar Hajjar.

In a press conference that was held on Friday, the Secretary General of the World Zakat Forum (WZF) who also serves as Chair of BAZNAS, Prof. Dr. Bambang Sudibyo, MBA, CA was present with the world zakat activist who also serves as Deputy Secretary General of WZF, Dr. Elnur Salihovic (Bosnia) and Muhammad Lawal Maidoki (Nigeria).

Bambang said, “Post COVID-19 Economic Recovery: Activating the Role of World Zakat Forum” was raised as the main theme because WZF member countries try to contribute, namely by providing a forum for zakat stakeholders to share their thoughts and experiences in an effort to maximize the role of zakat during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The topic of global economic recovery after the pandemic is increasingly being discussed among experts. The World Zakat Forum 2020 is committed to opening up significant space for stakeholders managing zakat from various member countries, to expand the contribution of zakat into this global economic recovery agenda, “Bambang said in a press conference on Friday.

Given the increasing poverty due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Bambang continued, the WZF 2020 event could be one of the world’s solutions, especially WZF member countries to be able to contribute to reducing poverty due to the pandemic by maximizing the role of zakat.

“With the presence of experts from various fields as sources to share thoughts and knowledge, this annual event is expected to formulate a WZF 2020 resolution that can be utilized by zakat stakeholders around the world,” he said.

During the two days of the WZF 2020 event, dozens of speakers will present explanations on the management of zakat during the Covid-19 pandemic, including Haji Ahmad Shukri Yusoff from Malaysia, Dr. Elnur Salihovic from Bosnia-Herzegovina, Muhammad Lawal Maidoki from Nigeria, Azara Abukari Haroun from Ghana, Azim Kidwai from England and other leaders of world zakat organizations.

Previously, the 2019 WZF International Conference took place in Indonesia by designating the City of Bandung as the host.
The conference which was held in November 2019, as many as 300 conference participants from 28 countries agreed to formulate 7 resolutions from the theme raised “Optimizing Global Zakat Role through Digital Technology”. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)