The Role of Islamic Social Finance in Empowering Youth and Women in Sokoto State of Nigeria

Abstract

Islamic social finance is an emerging field of study and practice, distinct from commercial finance, focusing on financing individuals and communities to support socio-economic development. Despite its growing importance, it faces sustainability challenges arising from legal and regulatory constraints, as well as limited awareness among members of society.

The development of Islamic social finance in Nigeria can be traced back to the Islamic revival led by Shehu Uthman Bin Fodio in 1804. More recently, the establishment of the Zakat and Endowment Committee in Sokoto in 2007 contributed to increasing awareness and practice of contemporary Islamic social finance. This progress was further strengthened in 2016 when the government transformed the Committee into a Commission, granting it greater independence to initiate and implement its policies.

This paper aims to examine two recently implemented initiatives, namely the Youth and Women Empowerment programs. The study adopts a qualitative approach for data collection and analysis, based on two focus group sessions conducted with youth and women entrepreneurs who benefited from the empowerment programs implemented by the SZEC.

The findings indicate that youth participants have been able to harness their potential by expanding their businesses and improving the quality of their products and services—such as shoe repair—due to the skills acquired through training. Similarly, women participants have experienced significant improvements in their welfare and that of their children, and have been able to sustain their businesses as stable sources of income. However, participants identified the marketing of their finished products as the main challenge they continue to face.