Journal of Islamic Social Finance

An Investigation into Knowledge, Acceptance and Adoption of Islamic Finance Principles among Women Entrepreneurs in Southwest Nigeria

2026-05-05T13:19:52+08:00

The swift growth of Islamic banking and finance in Nigeria has not resulted in substantial penetration among women-owned enterprises. The current study investigates the gap between intention and actual usage of Islamic finance among women entrepreneurs in a demographic region of the country. Using an institutional-behavioral framework, combined with the Theory of Planned Behavior and level of structural accessibility, the study surveys 120 women-owned micro and small enterprises in the Southwestern region of Nigeria. The study uses Ordinary Least Squares and logistic regression to assess intention-adopt and actual participation in financing women-owned businesses. The findings reveal a disconnect between intention and actual participation. Rather than mere awareness or intention, structural factors play a big role in the process. The study, thus, highlights the need for institutional access and equitable services to enhance Islamic financial operations within emerging dual banking systems in Nigeria.

Impediments to Optimizing Zakat Collection in Malaysia: A Bibliometric Analysis of Scholarly Literature (2011-2025)

2026-03-16T15:41:02+08:00

This study presents a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of scholarly literature on impediments to optimizing zakat collection in Malaysia from 2011 to 2025. Through systematic analysis of 52 peer-reviewed articles sourced from Google Scholar, this research identifies key thematic areas, prolific authors, publication trends, and citation patterns within the field. The findings reveal six major impediment categories: governance and transparency issues (36.5% of literature), distribution and asnaf challenges (36.5%), administrative and structural barriers (61.5%), technology and digital transformation challenges (26.9%), compliance and trust deficits (25.0%), and collection mechanism inefficiencies (15.4%). The analysis shows a significant surge in research output from 2020 onwards, with 33 publications (63.5%) appearing in the last five years, indicating growing academic interest in zakat optimization. The most influential work, Wahab and Rahman's (2011) governance framework, has garnered 492 citations, establishing the foundational importance of institutional governance in zakat management. This study provides valuable insights for policymakers, zakat institutions, and researchers seeking to understand the multifaceted challenges facing zakat collection optimization in Malaysia.

The Role of Islamic Social Finance in Driving Industrial Innovation and Inclusive Economic Growth

2026-05-01T09:07:24+08:00

In the contemporary era of digital transformation and industrial acceleration, the integration of Islamic economic values with innovative financial mechanisms becomes increasingly vital. This study investigates the role of Islamic social finance—including zakat, waqf, and qard hasan—in fostering industrial innovation and promoting inclusive economic growth in Indonesia. Drawing on both primary data collected through structured surveys from micro-entrepreneurs and secondary data from BAZNAS, BWI, and national statistics, this research explores how the effective utilization of social finance instruments contributes to innovation among small businesses, especially in underserved and coastal regions. It also evaluates how these innovations lead to broader economic inclusion by increasing income, expanding employment opportunities, and reducing regional disparities. The findings aim to provide empirical insights for policymakers, zakat and waqf institutions, and stakeholders in the halal economy to develop sustainable financing models that align with maqashid shariah and national development goals. By empirically linking Islamic social finance with real-sector performance, this study contributes to the discourse on ethical financial innovation in the Muslim world and underscores its relevance in industrial development strategies.

The Role of BAZNAS in Managing Zakat for Humanitarian Relief and Socio-Economic Recovery in Indonesia

2026-07-14T20:37:13+08:00

This study examines the role of BAZNAS (Badan Amil Zakat Nasional) in managing zakat to support humanitarian assistance and socio-economic recovery in Indonesia. Using a qualitative case study approach, the research explores how zakat has been used in crisis situations such as natural disasters, public health emergencies, and post-pandemic economic recovery. It also evaluates how zakat contributes to long-term poverty reduction and mustahik empowerment through targeted programs and institutional transformation. Findings show that BAZNAS has made significant progress in using zakat for both relief and development, including lifting over 577,000 people out of poverty in 2023. The study highlights the importance of digital innovation, performance monitoring, and strategic planning in zakat management. Despite substantial growth in collection and outreach, zakat’s full potential is still underutilized. Strengthening institutional capacity, digital adoption, and data-driven decision-making are key to maximizing zakat's role as an Islamic social finance instrument for inclusive development

Promoting Islamic Social Finance: A Step Towards Inclusive and Sustainable Growth

2024-12-30T20:21:40+08:00

ABSTRACT

In any nation, inclusive and sustainable growth plays a vital role in helping to achieve long-term economic growth and guaranteeing a better life for the present and future generations. In Nigeria, progression towards achieving sustainable growth has been constrained due to challenges like poverty, hunger, disease, scarcity of resources, corruption, illiteracy, environmental degradation and poor framework implementation. This paper examines the role of Islamic social finance in bringing about inclusive and sustainable growth in Nigeria. A descriptive survey design was adopted where data were gathered through a structured questionnaire and focus group discussion. Findings revealed that Islamic Social Finance has been functioning as a potential means of enhancing financial inclusion and sustainable growth through zakat (obligatory almsgiving), sadaqah (voluntary almsgiving), waqf (endowment), infaq (almsgiving for God’s sake), qarda hasan (interest-free loan), and Islamic microfinance. These play an important role in bringing about monetary policies that stimulate growth while ensuring stability and equitable distribution of wealth among others. However, irregularity in the payment of zakat, members’ default in paying back loans at the stipulated time, embezzlement, stakeholders’ negligence of responsibilities, the inadequacy of Islamic cooperative societies and banks, lack of knowledge and public awareness of waqf, and the need for product innovations were identified as major challenges. The study concluded that, the regulatory environment should be developed further to fully support the unique aspects of Islamic social finance and to integrate them into the broader financial system of Nigeria.