When Salimata Traore's husband died, her family was left without a breadwinner, and she was forced to raise her daughter, Setou, without any support.

For widows like Salimata, life in developing countries can be especially hard. With no income or livelihood, supporting a family alone is incredibly difficult. 

Luckily, her daughter Setou was sponsored by a generous donor and was accepted at the Muslim Hands School Of Excellence in Bamako, where she has been studying for a year now.

Once Setou's donor learned about her mother's dire circumstances, she was moved to do more. Her donation enabled Salimata to open her own shop selling skin and hair products, allowing her to earn an income and support her family. 

When Diakaridia Samake’s father died, he and his family were left with little hope for the future. His mother struggled to raise her young family, gripped by poverty in the village of Tienfala, Mali.

So desperate was their situation that young Diakaridia had to go out to work in a bike mechanics. He was just eight years old.

Thanks to your Zakat, the Muslim Hands staff were able to enroll him in school, where he receives the best education in the region, free meals, and healthcare.

His life has been transformed, and Diakaridia is so much happier at school than he was before. An education is a passport to a brighter future full of hope and potential for children like Diakaridia. 

Zakat is the third pillar of Islam and a transformational concept that has the ability to change the world. 

Zakat is intended to purify our wealth, not only physically, but also spiritually. It purifies our hearts against selfishness as well as ensuring that society's poorest are protected against hunger. and destitution. 

It plays a key role in not only enshrining the rights of the poorest in the community, but it also facilitates in enabling them to gain the skills and aid needed in today’s economy to come out of a life of poverty.

Zakat also crucially builds a relationship of consideration and appreciation between different members of society by providing ongoing support from the rich to the poor.

We know that calculating your Zakat and getting your head around the basics can be sometimes difficult and for that reason, we have created a short illustrated guide.

We’ve broken down some of the most common questions and cleared up the main misconceptions about Zakat.