Organisational and Institutional Challenges in Managing Waqf Property Development

Abstract

Waqf land is an important institutional asset with substantial socioeconomic potential. Despite growing interest in waqf development, its outcomes remain constrained by complex organisational and institutional challenges. Previous research has primarily concentrated on the legal and religious dimensions of waqf land, with insufficient attention paid to the managerial and organisational factors that influence development performance. This gap is particularly significant given that empirical evidence on how governance structures, organisational capacity, and stakeholder interactions shape waqf development outcomes remain limited in the management literature. This paper aims to address the issue by examining the organisational and institutional challenges regarding managing waqf property development in Malaysia. Drawing on institutional theory as an analytical lens, a qualitative research design was adopted, and a semi-structured interview with important stakeholders in waqf land development, such as waqf administrators, was carried out. Purposive sampling was employed to select four informants with direct involvement in waqf management and development decision-making. Thematic analysis using ATLAS.ti 25 was applied to the interview data, and findings were interpreted through Scott's three-pillar framework of regulatory, normative and cultural-cognitive institutions. The findings indicate six major components of challenges, which are governance and institutional capacity, stakeholder conflicts and coordination issues, land feasibility and tenure challenges, lack of understanding and awareness, legal and policy limitations and financial constraints and sustainability issues. These challenges are shown to correspond systematically to the three institutional pillars, revealing that waqf development difficulties are not merely operational but are embedded within a multilayered institutional structure. This paper contributes to business and management literature by providing empirical insights into property development management within institutional organisations of waqf land. The findings offer an in-depth understanding of waqf land development challenges for organisational leaders and policymakers seeking to improve governance structures, coordination mechanisms and managerial capacity in waqf development initiatives.