Zakat in Indonesia keeps on growing, however many people in the country especially Muslims still have no idea about this obligatory payment according to the Islamic law.

Bogor, West Java (Indonesia Window) – Zakat in Indonesia is continuing to grow, however a number of people especially Muslims, communities and companies still have no idea about this obligatory payment according to the Islamic law.

An institution of collecting zakat in Indonesia, calling itself Lembaga Amil Zakat Solidaritas Insan Peduli (LAZ SIP) and the Indonesian Muslim Entrepreneurs Community in Bogor, West Java, locally known as Komunitas Pengusaha Muslim Indonesia (KPMI) Korwil Bogor signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Tuesday in an effort to make those entities understand zakat.

The MoU among others concerns a program on mentoring and business empowerment programs for people or communities in need.

"This program aligns with LAZ SIP's commitment to providing services to mustahik (zakat recipients) through empowerment," Ustadz Muhammad Irfandi, Lc., Chairman of LAZ SIP, said following the signing of the memorandum of understanding at the LAZ SIP office in Indonesia’s Cileungsi sub-district, Bogor district, West Java province.

The LAZ SIP Chairman stated that the business empowerment program is planned to begin in January 2026, targeting 20 participants as the first batch in the Bogor area, particularly in Cileungsi sub-district which is LAZ SIP's primary working area.

According to Ustadz Irfandi, the program participants are those in the decile five (D5) category, namely those who are considered poor but still able to survive.

"To survive and thrive, they need a place of business, business knowledge, and business capital, so they can eventually become munfik (donors of alms) or mushoddiq (givers of charity). They can even become muzakki (givers of zakat)," he explained.

Decile five (D5) is a group of people in the top 40-50 percent of the overall welfare distribution.

This category is generally associated with mediocre economic conditions, but they are still eligible for social assistance, such as non-cash food assistance and dues assistance recipients under the National Health Insurance program managed by the Social Security Administration Agency.

“There are seven stages that we have discussed together, starting from participant selection, training and mentoring programs, to the marketing stage," he said, adding that the business empowerment program will last for three years.

He hopes that the first batch of the business empowerment program, along with the KPMI Korwil Bogor, would run smoothly and produce strong and independent entrepreneurs.

"God willing, if this program runs smoothly, the seven stages can be shortened depending on the participants' conditions, so we can open a second batch, at least after six months," he pointed out.

Reporting by Indonesia Window