| Title | From Consultancy to Critique: The 'Success Story' of Globalized Zakat Management in Malaysia and its Normative Ambiguities |
|---|---|
| ID_Doc | 77633 |
| Authors | Müller, DM |
| Title | From Consultancy to Critique: The 'Success Story' of Globalized Zakat Management in Malaysia and its Normative Ambiguities |
| Year | 2017 |
| Published | Globalizations, 14, 1 |
| Abstract | The administration of Islamic alms (zakat) funds in Malaysia underwent spectacular transformations since the 1990s, shaped by the appropriation of marketized forms of management and a skyrocketing growth of collection and distribution rates. Simultaneously, local zakat funds are increasingly used to pursue targets of sustainable poverty reduction, such as the empowerment of micro-entrepreneurship. This globally inspired 'success story' is referred to by various international observers, including development organizations, as a 'role model' for other countries to learn from. After illustrating what makes the Malaysian case so particularly attractive, this article develops a critique of international perceptions of this 'success story' by making explicit some of its underlying ambiguities. Instead of narrowly celebrating instrumental aspects of business-style organizational innovation and calling for their globalization, a deeper understanding of the discursive embeddedness of Malaysian zakat management would reveal significant normative tensions with secular humanitarian ethics and human rights law, with implications beyond the Malaysian case. |
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