REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- National Alms Agency (Baznas) Head, Noor Achmad, emphasized that strengthening the potential of zakat, infaq, and shadaqah (ZIS), Islamic philanthropic practices, can play a major role in alleviating poverty and improving the economic conditions of Indonesians.

"We must all unite to encourage the potential of ZIS so that it becomes a strong pillar in poverty alleviation in this country," Noor remarked in a statement in Jakarta, Friday.

According to Noor, those practices, involving obligatory alms-giving, voluntary charity, and charitable donations, have huge potential to become the economic foundation that can lead Indonesia towards more equitable prosperity, especially by continuing to increase the role of Islamic philanthropy.

He encouraged the establishment of synergies between various parties through concrete programs that can have a real impact on improving the welfare of Indonesians with a more structured and targeted scheme.

For instance, in the field of education, Noor encouraged all Zakat Management Organizations (LAZ) in Indonesia to jointly realize the vision of Golden Indonesia in 2045 by synergizing to provide scholarships for young people pursuing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) programs.

"This step aims to prepare superior human resources to face future challenges. The STEM programs are considered to be one of the strategic study programs to support the vision of Golden Indonesia 2045," he remarked.

He also emphasized the need for cooperation among zakat institutions to achieve the goal of helping the community. Thus, collaboration between Baznas and LAZ is an important foundation for achieving the vision of public welfare.

Meanwhile, Baznas Leader for National Coordination, Achmad Sudrajat, reminded of the importance of transparent reporting from each LAZ to Baznas in accordance with regulations aimed at increasing accountability in ZIA management, maintaining public trust, and ensuring that the funds are utilized according to targets.

"We want to maintain the trust of the public so that ZIS funds are distributed in an accountable manner," he stressed.

Achmad expressed hope that in the long term, the collaboration between Baznas and LAZ would serve as a model for other zakat institutions so that ZIS funds can be utilized effectively and bring benefits to the community.

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