Fitr Zakat Collection Reaches Record MVR 13.2 Million in Maldives

Islamic Minister Dr Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed has announced that the Maldives has recorded its highest-ever collection of Fitr Zakat this year, with a total of MVR 13,264,819 gathered nationwide.

The figures indicate a consistent increase in zakat contributions over the years. In 2023, the total collection amounted to MVR 12,691,506, while in 2022, it stood at MVR 11,669,385. In 2021, MVR 12,594,777 was paid in zakat.

Minister Shaheem attributed this rise to growing public confidence in the Zakat House and the implementation of a more efficient collection system.

A total of 2,765 individuals are currently registered as poor and needy, with each receiving MVR 4,500 in zakat distribution. The government has also allocated MVR 500,000 from this year’s Fitr Zakat to support children in Gaza.

As part of the zakat collected in wheat, each registered poor individual in Malé has received 15 kilogrammes of wheat.

The government has introduced a centralised distribution system to ensure that all registered recipients receive an equal share of zakat. Previously, funds collected from individual islands were distributed among the poor within those islands, sometimes leading to disparities in the amounts received.

Minister Shaheem has stressed that under the new approach, zakat distribution is carried out nationwide as a unified system, ensuring fair and equal assistance to all eligible recipients.