Speakers at a seminar said Bangladesh can reduce poverty at a significant level by waqf’s resource mobilisation and ensuring good governance in its management.

They said this while addressing a seminar on ‘The Waqf and Human Capital Development’, orgnised by the Bangladesh Institute of Islamic Finance (BIFF), held at its conference hall in Motijheel on Saturday.

Dr. M Kabir Hassan, Professor of the Department of Economics and Finance at the University of New Orleans, USA, gave a key note presentation on the topic.

Professor Kabir highlighted Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, and ancient Bengal's contributions to poverty alleviation and social welfare activities through waqf assets.

He said the western world borrowed the idea of waqf from this subcontinent and the Muslim world, and then they established world-famous universities in the USA and the UK based on waqf properties.

Professor Kabir mentioned that Saudi Arabia has about USD $430 billion worth of registered waqf assets. He also pointed out that in Bangladesh, there's potential for using waqf properties to help reduce poverty by establishing good governance and introducing smart management systems.

Speaking on the topic, Dr Md. Akhtaruzzaman, Director General of the Bangladesh Institute of Bank Management (BIBM), a concern of Bangladesh Bank, said that there are more than four crore people in Bangladesh under the poverty line, despite different initiatives of the government for poverty alleviation.

He said that the government alone of a country cannot eradicate poverty; in this sector, waqf can play a very significant role in alleviating poverty.

He urged the rich and capable citizens of the country to come forward in establishing waqf property, which will play a role in terms of human welfare here and hereafter.

Dr M Abdul Aziz, founder director of BIIF and visiting faculty of IUT, Abul Kalam Azad, CEO of Takaful Islami Insurance Ltd, Shah Abdul Halim, Dr Afroza Bulbul, Dr Musharraf Hossain, and Lokman Hossain, among others, spoke at the function.