Answer for Written Question PT051

QUESTION

Yang Berhormat Awang Haji Daud bin Jihan

YANG BERHORMAT AWANG HAJI DAUD BIN JIHAN requested the MENTERI HAL EHWAL UGAMA to state the Ministry’s official guidelines and improvement measures concerning SKN applicants to MUIB, in order to clarify responsibilities and reduce the administrative burden at the village level.

ANSWER

Yang Berhormat Menteri Hal Ehwal Ugama

To ensure that applications for zakat assistance, particularly those involving Sistem Kebajikan Negara (SKN), can be processed in a more orderly and effective manner, the Ministry of Religious Affairs, through the Department of Zakat, Waqaf and Baitulmal Affairs, is undertaking and has implemented efforts to streamline application procedures and clarify, from time to time, the responsibilities of each party involved, in order to reduce the administrative burden at the grassroots level, such as that borne by penghulu mukim and village heads.

Among the efforts undertaken by the Department to clarify responsibilities and reduce the administrative burden at the village level is the implementation of a field initiative through the Program Kembara Zakat in 2026, which was held in all four districts of Negara Brunei Darussalam. The programme took place between January and February 2026 and was conducted in the form of dialogue sessions with the penghulu and village head institutions.

The main objective of this programme was to share information on the procedures for applying for zakat assistance, as well as to obtain direct feedback from penghulu and village heads regarding the challenges they face, particularly in handling applications through the SKN system.

Through these dialogue sessions, several issues were raised by the penghulu and village heads. These included confusion regarding the roles and responsibilities involved in the application support process, the burden of verifying applicants’ information, as well as overlap between applications for welfare assistance through JAPEM and applications for zakat assistance under the Majlis Ugama Islam Brunei (MUIB). This situation sometimes causes the application process to take longer and adds to the administrative burden at the village level.

To address this matter, several improvement measures have been proposed, including further strengthening communication and information sharing between penghulu, village heads and the JUZWAB management through the Microsoft 365 digital platform under the control and management of the National E-Government Centre (EGNC). In addition, it was proposed that regular briefing or training sessions be held to ensure that penghulu and village heads remain familiar with the latest procedures relating to applications for zakat assistance.

Overall, the organisation of the Program Kembara Zakat provided an opportunity for constructive discussions between the Department of Zakat, Waqaf and Baitulmal Affairs (JUZWAB) and the penghulu and village head institutions. Through this approach, it is hoped that a clearer, more efficient and coordinated assistance application management system can be established, thereby facilitating the affairs of members of the community in need of assistance and reducing the administrative burden at the village level.