Zakat Fund
Basic Information
Country
Geographic area
Programme type
Programme Details
Programme objectives
To ensure that needy households, especially the poorest of the poor, do not to fall into destitution, and to increase equity by redistributing income from those who are betteroff to those who are worse-of
Legal framework: The law of zakat and taxes was introduced in 1984 to make zakat payment compulsory. In 1986, a new law established an independent chamber—the Sudanese Zakat Chamber—to separate zakat from other taxes. In 2001, the Zakat Act of 2001 became the main guiding document for zakat. New amendments to the Zakat Law are being discussed
Zakat Fund. 2016. Annual Performance Report 2016. Khartoum: Sudan Zakat Fund.
Internal archives. In Arabic.
Hassanain, K., and A.e.E. Saaid, A. 2016. Zakah for Poverty Alleviation: Evidence from
Sudan. International Research Journal of Finance and Economics, 1450–2887
Programme components
Various activities, including cash transfers, subsidies, services and productive projects;
the poorest and neediest households receive about 70 per cent of the amounts collected,
of which 50 per cent is paid and distributed in cash and 20 per cent is for production and
subsistence schemes
Zakat Fund. 2016. Annual Performance Report 2016. Khartoum: Sudan Zakat Fund.
Internal archives. In Arabic.
Start date
1984
UNICEF Sudan. 2017. Personal communication.
Previous programme name (if any)
Taxes and Zakat Fund
Coverage
2,162,689 families in 2016
Zakat Fund. 2016. Annual Performance Report 2016. Khartoum: Sudan Zakat Fund.
Internal archives. In Arabic.
Programme expenditure
SDG2,076,492,314 in 2016, of which 13 per cent are in-kind expenditures.
Source of funding: Voluntary donations from agricultural products and livestock sales; profits from trade;
earned income; remittances from abroad
Zakat Fund. 2016. Annual Performance Report 2016. Khartoum: Sudan Zakat Fund.
Internal archives. In Arabic.
Turkawi, A. 2015. Social Protection and Safety Nets in Sudan. Brighton: Institute
of Development Studies. Accessed 27 July 2017. <http://www.ids.ac.uk/files/dmfile/
SocialprotectionandsafetynetsinSudan.pdf>
Targeting and eligiblity
Targeting methods
Means Test
Categorical Targeting
using data from the poverty census of 2011, undertaken by
the Zakat Fund in collaboration with the Central Bureau of Statistics. Reference:
Turkawi, A. 2015. Social Protection and Safety Nets in Sudan. Brighton: Institute
of Development Studies. Accessed 27 July 2017. <http://www.ids.ac.uk/files/dmfile/
SocialprotectionandsafetynetsinSudan.pdf>.
Targeted areas
Nationwide
Target groups
Poor families identified by the criteria developed by the Higher Institute of Zakat Sciences
Eligibility criteria
There are 10 criteria to identify poor families, established by the Higher Institute of
Zakat Sciences. If a household has one or more of the following characteristics, it is
considered poor:
1. The family does not have any income, the head of the family is unemployed, and there
is no one able to work;
2. The income of the head of the family is less than SDG120 per month, and the family
has no income from any other source;
3. The average per capita consumption of the family is less than SDG114 per month';
4. The head of the family is unemployed as a result of disability, illness or lack of work;
5. The total family monthly income is less than the minimum wage;
6. The family is afflicted by diseases that are financially charged, and the head of the
family is paid;
7. The head of the family has a chronic illness and a family of six or more members, who
are all in education and have no other source of income;
8. The head of the household owns assets such as a house or agricultural land or a taxi
that does not work, so these assets do not generate income, and he has no money to
invest and a family that depends on him;
9. Entrepreneurs such as carpenters, farmers and blacksmiths who do not produce
enough for their sustenance and have no other income;
10. Agricultural workers and shepherds who have no livestock or other income and have
families of six or more members
UNICEF Sudan. 2017. Personal communication.
Eligibility reassessment (if any)
Eligibility reassessment is done every two years
UNICEF Sudan. 2017. Personal communication.
Coverage and other information
Type of benefits
Direct cash transfers; service and productive projects (poverty reduction projects) for
youth, women and people with disabilities; in-kind transfers to orphans and widows
Zakat Fund. 2016. Annual Performance Report 2016. Khartoum: Sudan Zakat Fund.
Internal archives. In Arabic.
Amount of benefits
Depends on the type of support
UNICEF Sudan. 2017. Personal communication
Payment/delivery frequency
Depends on the type of support
UNICEF Sudan. 2017. Personal communication.
Benefit delivery mechanism
Depends on the type of support
UNICEF Sudan. 2017. Personal communication
Minimum and maximum duration of benefits (if any)
Two years minimum, then the maximum duration is identified based
on the reassessment
UNICEF Sudan. 2017. Personal communication
Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms and frequency
There are frequent board meetings and field visits to monitor the performance
of local branches. MIS: Underdeveloped, but there are currently efforts to improve it
Zakat Fund. 2016. Annual Performance Report 2016. Khartoum: Sudan Zakat Fund.
Internal archives. In Arabic.
