RIYADH: More than 20 other members of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) have backed the International Zakat Fund project. The project envisages collecting Zakat from all over the Islamic world and redistribute it among the poorer section of the society was mooted by the Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI).

We have received tremendous support and encouragement for the project from King Abdullah as well as from Islamic scholars in different countries including Saudi Arabia and Egypt,” said Saleh Kamel, chairman of the ICCI.

He said measures have been taken to establish an international Zakat commission to streamline the collection and distribution of Zakat, which is one of the five pillars of Islam. “We have signed agreements with Mauritania, Senegal and Malaysia to establish the commission,” said Kamel.

There are more than 20,000 societies and agencies that are currently involved in the collection and distribution of Zakat in different parts of the Islamic world. The new fund will have offices in all Muslim states as well as in countries which have significant numbers of Muslims, he added.