Turning Zakat Awareness Into Action: PPZ-MAIWP's Digital Push For Young Payers

Oleh Muhammad Afiq Mohd Asri

This is the second and final part of a special report that examines PPZ-MAIWP's efforts to strengthen its digital approach in translating zakat awareness into action, particularly among the younger generation, including communication strategies, assessment and payment facilities, and methods to measure campaign effectiveness.

KOTA BHARU, Aug 29 (Bernama) -- In a world where smartphones have become the first point of access for almost everything, information about zakat is now readily available at people's fingertips. The real challenge, however, is ensuring that awareness does not end with merely viewing information.

For food trader Ahmad Asyraf Burhanuddin, 30, understanding how to calculate zakat is crucial because his business income fluctuates, while civil servant Nik Izatul Badariah Nik Abdullah, 25, values clear explanations on the types, calculation and timing of zakat payments.

"As a trader, my income is not necessarily the same every month. Therefore, I need to understand the correct method of calculation to avoid making mistakes when fulfilling my zakat obligations. The convenience of obtaining information and making checks online has been very helpful,” Ahmad Asyraf told Bernama.

Meanwhile, Nik Izatul said young people needed simple and accessible explanations to help turn their knowledge of zakat obligations into action.

"We know that zakat is compulsory, but sometimes we still wonder about the type of zakat we need to pay, how to calculate it and when payment should be made. When explanations are easily available online, it is easier for us to understand and take action," she said.

The experiences of Ahmad Asyraf and Nik Izatul illustrate the challenge faced by the Federal Territories Islamic Religious Council's Zakat Collection Centre (PPZ-MAIWP) in helping society, particularly the younger generation, move from awareness to understanding, assessment and ultimately payment.

PPZ-MAIWP chief executive officer Datuk Abdul Hakim Amir Osman said young people were not indifferent to zakat but needed information that was relevant to their lives and could easily be translated into action.

He said zakat content should be linked to real-life situations, such as receiving a first salary, earning additional income, freelancing, running an online business, building savings or beginning to invest.

“PPZ-MAIWP would continue strengthening its digital approach through zakat calculators, consultation services, interactive content and simpler payment processes.

"The user journey, from obtaining information and checking eligibility to making an assessment and completing payment, must be seamless and user-friendly," he said.

Abdul Hakim said collaboration with higher education institutions, employers, gig economy platforms, financial institutions, professional communities and credible content creators was important in expanding outreach.

According to him, awareness programmes could be introduced at the beginning of a person's career to encourage zakat practices from the time they receive their first income but at the same time, campaign effectiveness should not be measured solely by views, likes, shares or attendance at a programme.

"These indicators are important for measuring reach, but they are insufficient to prove that a campaign has brought about changes in understanding and behaviour," he said.

He said PPZ-MAIWP assesses campaign effectiveness at several stages, beginning with reach and awareness, including the number of people receiving campaign messages, visiting official platforms or seeking further information on zakat.

The second stage measures consideration through the use of zakat calculators, requests for assessment services, enquiries received and payer registrations, he said.

Abdul Hakim said the next stage involves actual action - the number of completed transactions, new payers, registrations for regular zakat deductions and the rate of payers who fulfil their zakat obligations again the following year.

He said the approach enabled PPZ-MAIWP to assess the entire campaign journey, from exposure and information-seeking to assessment and eventual payment.

"The analysis could help improve campaign messages, channels and approaches according to the needs of different segments of society.

"For certain campaigns, pre- and post-campaign studies can also be used to assess changes in knowledge, understanding of zakat types, confidence in institutions and the inclination to make payments through official channels," he said.

According to him, the young generation want to see evidence that their payments make a difference, which requires information on the impact of zakat distribution to be clear and reliable without compromising the dignity of aid recipients.

He said PPZ-MAIWP's goal was not merely to produce campaigns that attract attention or go viral, but to build understanding, simplify the process and develop consistent zakat payers who have confidence in the role of zakat institutions.

"PPZ-MAIWP has also introduced the MyZakat application to facilitate zakat payments," he said.

-- BERNAMA