Zakat collection: a crucial duty of the state

While the most commonly mentioned recipients of zaka funds are the poor and needy, the individuals who collect and distribute the zaka also get revenue from the fund. The payment of these people with zaka money is sanctioned in al-Qur'an. All the workers who deal with zaka, including the accountants and the guards, can be paid from this pool. This fact is in line with the idea that zaka is to have its own administration and not be an expense to the state. Also, the mention in al-Qur'an of the people in charge of the zaka shows that the payment of zaka should be administered by body rather than given out by the individual Muslim. Zaka collectors should inform people of what they should pay. They should know who needs to pay zaka and on which properties zaka is charged. Some should specialize in agricultural zaka. The body of people to whom zaka should be given must also be known by those in the administration. The zaka agency should have two basic components--the collection de