Coordination and digitalization a mong zakat institutions to strengthen social protection in Indonesia: An assessment of progress

Abstract

Zakat, a mandatory obligation for Muslims to disburse a portion oftheir wealth, has the potential to significantly alleviate poverty inMuslim-majority countries with large Muslim populations. Despite a122% increase in zakat collection from 2015 to 2018,the nationalzakat collection in Indonesia remains proportionately low compared toits potential.This work intends to comprehensively elucidate on howzakat management coordination and digitalization in Indonesia haveprogressed to this moment. Through acontentanalysis of descriptivefindings, the study assesses the coordination and digitalizationimprovement in Indonesia's zakat management. The results show thatthe coordination and digitalization of zakat management in Indonesiahave improved, as indicated by the National Zakat Index and Digital-Readiness Index. However, there are still areas that need improvement,such as the integration of the zakat database, and the preparation ofhigh-skilled amil or human resources in zakat management who cancopewithinformation technologydevelopment to enhance zakatoperational activities. This study highlights the importance ofimproving coordination and digitalization in zakat management toachieve the full potential of zakat in poverty alleviation in Indonesia.