UNHCR urges continued Zakat contributions amid COVID-19 emergency

• In 2019, the Refugee Zakat Fund has received a total of $43,165,000 allowing UNHCR to provide lifesaving support to over 1 million refugees and internally displaced persons in Bangladesh, Yemen, Iraq, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Malaysia and Mauritania
• UNHCR urges Muslims to support refugees struggling to cope with the repercussions of the global COVID-19 outbreak through the Refugee Zakat Fund. Zakat will reach families affected by lockdowns and lack of economic opportunities
• “In the countries where UNHCR operates, the COVID-19 pandemic is an ‘emergency on top of an emergency,” says Khaled Khalifa, UNHCR Regional Representative to the GCC Countries, in a video statement 

Dubai, 20 April  2020: The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) launched on Sunday the findings of its 2020 Islamic Philanthropy Report, highlighting the impact of the Refugee Zakat Fund on vulnerable refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) across the globe. The Report revealed that in 2019, the Refugee Zakat Fund received a total of over USD 43 million, including the largest ever single contribution made by the Thani Bin Abdullah Bin Thani Al-Thani Humanitarian Fund of over USD 35 million which has helped support a total of 164,696 vulnerable families (875,000 individuals).

“Displaced communities are, without a doubt, among the most vulnerable populations that require close and strategic attention from philanthropists wanting to make a serious impact on the state of the globe,” said Sheikh Thani Bin Abdullah Bin Thani Al-Thani, Founder of the Thani Bin Abdullah Bin Thani Al-Thani Humanitarian Fund.  “The Muslim world has a historic opportunity to further demonstrate the significant role of Islamic social finance, and particularly Zakat, in humanitarian assistance, through extending a helping hand to the world’s displaced populations, while realizing key Sustainable Development Goals,” he added.

Other donations to the UNHCR Refugee Zakat Fund were from individuals, institutional partners and philanthropists primarily from the MENA region. These donations have helped provide lifesaving assistance to a total of 191,497 vulnerable families (1,025,014 individuals).