Mobile service in association with Zakat Fund for users to calculate & make contributions

Dubai, 11 September 2007: Etisalat and the UAE Zakat Fund, one of the leading independent federal entities in the UAE, today announced the establishment of a partnership to launch a new free service that helps customers calculate and pay their 'Zakat' amounts using their mobile phones. Details of the initiative were announced during a press conference held at Etisalat's stand at GULFCOMMS 2007, addressed by Jamal K. Al Mazrouei . Zakat resources and Media department manager and Khalifa Al Shamsi, Vice President Marketing  -Consumer and SMB-  Etisalat

The launch of the service follows an earlier Memorandum of Understanding signed by both organisations to work together to develop the service. The Zakat Fund has provided all the necessary information on how to calculate Zakat according to the principles of Islam.

Etisalat's customers are now able to calculate and pay the Zakat owed against their money, gold, silver, crops, and herds according to the Islamic principles, by simply accessing the menu from their mobiles at *123#. Customers can also instantly make their Zakat payments, using the online payment option available on their mobile phones.

Jamal K. Al Mazrouei appreciated Etisalat's support, and said: "Etisalat has always been active in launching advanced services and solutions that bring benefits to various segments of society. This new service is testament to how Etisalat puts technology to work to meet the needs of telecoms users. We fully expect that the Zakat service will be exceptionally helpful to our activities as people will be able to pay Zakat securely and from the comfort of their own control."

"We would like to thank Etisalat for this total solution, which is putting the UAE on the international map for being the first nation to bring such a convenient service", he added.

The launch of the Zakat service coincides with a wide range of mobile commerce solutions that Etisalat has in the pipeline, which empowers an Etisalat mobile to be able to conduct a number of transactions securely. These services are in line with the UAE Government's move to encourage using technology for online payments.

Speaking about the new service, Khalifa Al Shamsi, Etisalat, said: "We are proud to be the world's first telecom operator to launch such a personally enabling service. We at Etisalat believe that our role is not confined to providing telecom solutions, but to have a more active role in servicing the society and its various sectors."

"We will continue to deliver out of the box services and to lead the regional telecoms sector. The expansion of our online payments and mobile commerce offerings underlines our commitment to make use of the latest advances in technology and adapt it to the needs of our customers", he added.

Al Shamsi also stated that Etisalat's online payment service enjoys unmatched degrees of security and reliability as it is protected by 3D secure system developed by Visa and Mastercard, the world leaders in credit card solutions.

Further details on the Zakat Calculator and Etisalat Online Services is available on www.etisalat.ae

-Ends- 

Press release issued by Corporate Communications Department - Etisalat

For further media information, please contact:
Ahmed Bin Ali, Vice President Corporate Communications
Tel: 02 6182173             
Fax: 02 6334448
PRD@etisalat.ae       
www.etisalat.ae

© Press Release 2007