The Awqaf SA Women’s Waqf Forum was one of two parallel forums held at the Masjid Abu Bakr Siddique, Erasmia, South Africa. The aim of the forum was to educate and encourage women to make waqf that is to create an overall awareness of waqf and its role amongst women. Presentations were made by Srs Mariam Rhentula and Amina Cajee as well as international guest speaker Dr Magda I Mohsin from Malaysia. Issues such as the essence and basics of waqf, women’s role and capacity in advancing the institution of waqf, the potential of waqf as well as an overview of AWQAF SA were addressed in the presentations. There was a vibrant and extensive discussion with questions varying from basic aspects of waqf, how to develop waqf, and the sustainability of waqf. There also appeared to be a perception that Waqf was the domain of the wealthy as it required large capital amounts, this perception was removed through discussions of the concept of cash waqf. There was also a concern amongst the women on their marginalisation from positions in the mainstream muslim organisations which often led to their input being ignored despite their tremendous resources, capacity and ingenuity.
A panel discussion was held after lunch on the request of the sisters. The panel consisted of Dr Magda Mohsin (Malaysia), Dr Hisham Dafterdar (Kuwait), Dr Mohammed Obaidullah (Jeddah-IDB) and representatives from Awqaf SA. Dr Obaidullah provided a brief outline of Islamic Development Bank (IDB), while Dr Dafterdar highlighted that women have a great ability to influence the development of the institution of waqf based on their role in the muslim household. The panel discussion was also highly interactive and fruitful. Overall the women appeared motivated and empowered about waqf. The major realisation as a result of the forum was that there was an immense need for education on waqf amongst women in particular.