Zakat conference urges unified council, AI integration to boost role in Oman Vision 2040

SALALAH: The Third Zakat Conference and Exhibition concluded with key recommendations to strengthen Oman’s zakat system, including the establishment of a Zakat Committee Council to unify efforts and a Supreme Fatwa Committee to address contemporary challenges.
Organised by the Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs, the three-day conference in Salalah called for enhanced community awareness of zakat through specialised media programmes, greater use of modern technologies and artificial intelligence in zakat management, and closer alignment of zakat initiatives with priority development projects under Oman Vision 2040.
Other recommendations included creating an academic chair for zakat and endowments, developing an electronic zakat platform, appointing a ‘Zakat Specialist’ in every governorate, and standardising annual planning and reporting processes.
The conference also urged greater participation of women in zakat institutions, the creation of an electronic knowledge-sharing platform for zakat committees, and leveraging international best practices to align zakat work with tax systems.
The final day featured academic sessions on the legal dimensions of zakat collection, international zakat management experiences and institutional leadership, concluding with a keynote by Dr Shaikh Kahlan bin Nabhan al Kharousi, Assistant Grand Mufti of the Sultanate of Oman, on the jurisprudence of zakat and its contemporary challenges.
Several agreements were signed to enhance institutional integration between public and private sectors, notably a cooperation pact between the ministry and Eltizam Financial Sharia Consulting Company, an MoU with Dhofar University for scientific and cultural collaboration, and another between the Zakat Committee and Aqar Nizwa Endowment to establish a permanent site for zakat exhibitions in Nizwa.
The conference reflects Oman’s commitment to developing zakat on institutional and scientific foundations, strengthening public-private-academic partnerships and contributing to the nation’s holistic development in line with Oman Vision 2040. — ONA