A total of 28,128 individuals have paid Zakat during the first half of Ramadan, the Islamic Ministry has said.

The Islamic Ministry, which began collecting zakat on the second day of Ramadan, will stop collecting it at 2 pm on day 29 of Ramadan.

The Ministry has been collecting sums as Zakat at the Islamic Center’s main hall in the capital Malé City, Housing Development Corporation (HDC) in Hulhumalé, as well as in Villingilli from 10:30 am to 1 pm on weekdays. Relevant city and island councils will collect Zakat in their constituencies.

Telecommunication providers Dhiraagu and Ooredoo have set up means to collect Zakat as well, in addition to Allied Insurance and Bank of Maldives (BML).

The levy for Zakat is set at 2.4kgs of rice. This is MVR 16 per head if its regular rice, MVR 55 for Thai rice and MBR 80 for Basmati rice. Those residing in the outer lying atolls may pay Zakat according to the prices available to them given that they give away not less than the required 2.4kg.

The Ministry had collected over MVR 2 million in Zakat last year. The sum was distributed to those that were listed as heavily low-income or individuals.

As one of the five pillars of Islam, Zakat is a religious obligation for all Muslims who meet the necessary criteria of wealth.