A BRIEF SURVEY OF INSTITUTIONAL ADMINISTRATION OF ZAKAH IN NIGER STATE

ABSTRACT

This paper employed qualitative design in exploring the services of Niger State Zakaat and Endowment Board on the administration of Zakah. It surveys the organizational structure of the Board and its functions on collection and disbursement of Zakah. Established in 2001 by state law, the Board was conferred with the powers to collect and distribute Zakah. Apart from the law establishing the Board, Niger state has a separate law on Zakah, which prescribes the items, beneficiaries, collection and distribution. For an effective organized collection and distribution, the Board delegates responsibilities to councils and committees. Thus, collections were carried out by committees functioning at state, zonal, district, village and ward levels. Reports of collection and disbursements showed that, Zakah proceeds collected and disbursed were mainly cash and grains. In some cases proceeds collected in forms of grains and animals were converted into cash for disbursement. Contents of the reports of collection showed that some zones made more collection than others, with some zones recording no collections on certain items. However, sharing the proceeds equally to the beneficiaries in all the zones demonstrated that collections and disbursements were below expectation. Though this had affected the success of the services of the Board, it goes to show that that there are elements of transparency and accountability in institutional administration of Zakah. 

Keywords: Niger State, Institutional Administration, Zakah