How Waqf Can Strengthen Community Support as Economic Hardship Bites

As food prices rise and family incomes shrink, many Muslim communities in northern Nigeria are reviving waqf, a charitable endowment that dedicates assets such as shops, farms, boreholes or cash to long-term public benefit. Income from these assets can support widows, schoolchildren, clinics and other community needs. The renewed focus on waqf reflects gaps in public social protection. Mosques and local committees are increasingly raising funds for school fees, water projects and vulnerable households. However, community charity should support, not replace, government responsibility for citizens’ welfare. For waqf to endure, endowments need proper registration, trustworthy trustees, written rules and transparent accounts. State zakat and endowment bodies can protect these assets without taking over community initiatives. Modern Islamic finance tools could also help turn small contributions into sustainable funding for education, healthcare and poverty relief.

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