JAKARTA — In its development, waqf as a social worship can be the best investment for Muslims. However, not many people are exposed to literacy about the collaboration between waqf and investment. As an effort to increase public literacy regarding this matter, on Thursday (21/3/2024), Dompet Dhuafa together with the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) initiated a talk show entitled ‘Waqf Invest Talk: Eternal Benefits with Investment and Sharing’ at the IDX Building, Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta.
The event was opened by remarks from the Chairman of the Board of Dompet Dhuafa Republika Foundation (YDDR), Ahmad Juwaini. He said that initially Dompet Dhuafa maintained the trust of the wakif to channel their alms in various forms of good facilities. For example, the construction of hospitals, schools, Islamic boarding schools, and mosques.
He pointed out that Dompet Dhuafa invests in productive sectors that will be beneficial in the long run. In addition to social worship, Juwaini continued, this can open up the potential for investment-based waqf in the financial sector. Combining waqf and investment produces two results, material and non-material.
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‘The benefits of waqf are like a snowball rolling, the dimensions of the benefits are bigger. If it is in the productive sector, apart from benefiting people in need, we will also involve many people to work there. Driving the economy that can empower the community and the welfare of the ummah. It requires extraordinary complexity, so we need the support of the community as well,’ he said.
In line with Juwaini, the Head of the IDX’s Sharia Capital Market Division, Irwan Abdalloh, mentioned that waqf in the context of the capital market is an investment, where assets will continue to grow. Unfortunately, people still think that waqf assets are only inanimate objects.
To the participants consisting of donors, alliance partners, students, and the public, Irwan shared the process of socialising and developing waqf products as an investment mechanism.
He started by working with the National Sharia Council (DSN) of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) to create a fatwa on the mechanism of stock transactions. The fatwa then became the basis for the development of a platform called Shariah Online Trading System (SOTS).
‘It was a long struggle. We worked together with many parties. Until now, SOTS has one of the programmes, namely Infak Saham, by donating a certain percentage of the proceeds of an investment,’ Irwan explained.
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The talk show was enlivened by many parties. They are the Head of Waqf Investment Development Institute (LPIW) Dompet Dhuafa, Prima Hadi Putra; Head of Sharia Poems PT Phillip Sekuritas Indonesia, Zainal Falah; Head of Product Development & Management Department BNI AM, Kemal Sandi Rahman; and Influencer & Financial Planner, Nadia Harsya.
Prima Hadi explained that waqf has a broad definition. Dompet Dhuafa itself has made many improvisations and transformations in creating programs to channel waqf funds. For example, in 2004, Dompet Dhuafa launched a mutual fund product that has grown to this day.
In the context of this combination of waqf and sharia investment, Putra reminds us of the importance for a waqf nazir to produce programmes that are in demand by the market.
‘In addition to the mandate to manage the trust of the waqf endowers, Dompet Dhuafa must also be able to continue to be creative in producing products that are in demand by the community,’ he said.
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Continuing Prima Hadi, Zainal Falah explained about the Islamic capital market that is not yet known by the wider community. The difference between the capital market in general and the Islamic capital market is the product base. Basically, shares are proof of ownership of a company. Sharia stocks, as a product, must come from management that is in accordance with Islamic law – not containing elements of usury.
According to him, it is a challenge when Islam has a diversity of understanding on this matter. So Falah also suggested returning it to the MUI fatwa.
‘There is one example. There was once a customer who wanted to endow his shares. We bridged the gap. There is also a customer who wants to do cash waqf through a Customer Fund Account (RDN). These are examples of waqf that are easy to do today,’ explained Falah.
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Kemal continued to discuss mutual funds – a collection of funds from a combination of investors managed as a product, as a form of endowment. There are many forms: Sharia Money Market Mutual Fund; Sharia Fixed Income Mutual Fund; Sharia Equity Mutual Fund.
The acceptance of waqf in BNI-AM Sharia Mutual Fund collaborates with Dompet Dhuafa. Funds will be channelled to Dompet Dhuafa. There are three types of distribution programmes, namely Platinum (investment principal which is entirely endowed through Dompet Dhuafa); Gold (waqf of returns); and Regular (investment principal and returns remain as investments).
‘Platinum donors can go directly to BNI AM. Then it will be endowed through Dompet Dhuafa. Then with Regular, people can start investing in mutual funds starting from just Rp10,000. Besides investing, it is important for us not to forget to share,’ Kemal explained.
The talkshow was closed with a story of becoming an investor at a young age by Nadia. She shared that investing is a long process. Firstly, investors must set clear investment goals to keep the process going. Secondly, investment can be started by choosing a lower risk. Third, be patient to keep saving some of your income.
‘Investment is about growth. There is a time horizon, not just retirement funds. Investment is also not just about making money, but planting good things through waqf,’ Nadia concluded. (Dompet Dhuafa)
Text & Photo: Hany Fatihah Ahmad
Editor: Dhika Prabowo