Zakat and Social Mobility: A Shift From Charity To Sustainable Welfare

Nafi'ah Nafi'ah; Khoirul Fathoni

doi:10.37680/ijief.v6i1.10146

Authors

Nafi'ah Nafi'ah UIN Kiai Ageng Muhammad Besari Ponorogo
Khoirul Fathoni Institut Agama Islam Sunan Giri Ponorogo

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.37680/ijief.v6i1.10146

Keywords:

Zakat; Social Mobility;Islamic Welfare; Maqāṣid Al- Sharī' Ah

Abstract

This study aims to critically analyze the welfare paradigm underlying zakat management in Indonesia and formulate a reorientation of zakat from a charity-based approach to a social mobility instrument for mustahik. The study employs a qualitative approach with a multiple-case study design on zakat institutions in Indonesia. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, non-participatory observation, and document analysis, then analyzed using thematic analysis within the framework of Islamic welfare theory and maqāṣid al- sharī'ah. The results show that the dominance of the charity paradigm has limited the role of zakat to curative and short-term functions, so that zakat, including productive zakat, has not been able to encourage sustainable changes in the socio-economic status of mustahik. Productive zakat tends to be symbolic, lacks mentoring, and is not equipped with outcome indicators and exit strategies, which have implications for the reproduction of dependency on mustahik. From the perspective of maqāṣid al- sharī'ah, this condition reflects the gap between the normative objectives of zakat and institutional practices. This study recommends reorienting zakat management towards a social mobility-based welfare paradigm by placing the independence of mustahik as the main indicator of success, strengthening long-term mentoring, and integrating zakat into the social development and Islamic social finance ecosystem.

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