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Philanthropy during Ramadan is going strong despite the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new survey.
Among those polled by YouGov in the UAE, 46 percent said they will celebrate the festival by giving food, other essentials or money to the needy. Two in five of the respondents plan to increase their donations this year, and those most likely to donate are Arab expatriates (56 percent) and residents who are married and have children (53 percent).
The market research firm conducted the survey among 1,010 respondents in the UAE between March 15 and 21, 2021, to examine the spending patterns of consumers.
Zakat
Zakat is widely practiced among billions of Muslims around the world during the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. Charity giving is usually focused on the less privileged and the poor.
This will be the second time Muslims worldwide will observe Ramadan under the shadow of the COVID-19 outbreak. And for many of them, nothing will change when it comes to how they spend their money on essentials this year.
More than half (51 percent) said they will spend the same amount of money on food and beverage as they did before the pandemic hit the country. Spending on medicines and data plan/ internet will also remain unchanged for 50 percent and 52 percent of the consumers, respectively.
However, spending on discretionary items, such as fashion and electronic products/ gadgets is likely to take a hit, with 43 percent and 39 percent of the respondents saying they are likely to cut their outgoings for these categories this Ramadan.
UNHCR, The UN Refugee Agency supported 2.1 million refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs) through Zakat and Sadaqah funds in 2020, thanks to institutional partners and philanthropists across the region and globally.
Zakat donations last year saw a 12.5 percent increase at $48.5 million compared with 2019.There was also an increase of 59 percent growth in Zakat beneficiaries, the agency said in its Annual Islamic Philanthropy Report, titled ‘Islamic Philanthropy - Transforming the Lives of the World's Displaced.’
(Writing by Cleofe Maceda; editing by Seban Scaria)
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© ZAWYA 2021
