Selangor Journal: LZS first of its kind in Malaysia to release sustainability report

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SHAH ALAM, May 24 — The Selangor Zakat Board (LZS) has become the country’s first tithe institution to launch a report on its adherence to environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles in the collection and distribution of its zakat.

Its chairman Tan Sri Syed Anwar Jamalullail said the LZS Sustainability Report 2023 underscores the state agency’s commitment towards transparency in the fulfilling of its duties and responsibilities.

“This report is much more transparent. We do it according to the process, conduct account audits, and present them to the board of directors before announcing the accounts.”

“This way, the public will know where the zakat contributions are directed to. This is the first time we are doing it. It’s not compulsory, but we are doing it out of our own initiative,” he said at a press conference to update LZS’ 2023 collection and distribution yesterday.

Meanwhile, LZS chief executive officer Mohd Sabirin Mohd Sarbini said it expects the number of families qualified for zakat contributions to increase to 157,000 by 2030.

“Presently, based on statistics, close to 70,000 asnaf families (tithe recipients) are receiving assistance. They comprise families with a monthly household income of less than RM2,990,” he said.

Sabirin said LZS also consistently shares data with the state government to identify those who require assistance.

“We also conduct daily operations to track individuals in need, other than conducting surveys.”

Last month, Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari had said that the state government is aiming to eradicate hardcore poverty in Selangor by July.

He said the State Economic Planning Unit has been instructed to disburse surplus funds from the Bantuan Kehidupan Sejahtera Selangor (Bingkas), involving a monthly assistance of RM300, to the affected groups.

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