With King paying debt of 1,500 gharimat, initiative reaches goal

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah will cover the debts of 1,500 gharimat as part of an initiative he launched earlier this month to support indebted women, the Jordanian Zakat Fund announced on Saturday.

With His Majesty’s contribution, the initiative will have achieved its goal of covering all the debts of the gharimat who meet the set criteria, Minister of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs Abdul Nasser Abul Bassal, who heads the Zakat Fund’s administration team in charge of following up with the implementation of the initiative, announced in a statement.

The latest instalment of debt payments was issued as part of the initiative’s objective to repay the debts of 5,672 women whose individual debts do not exceed JD1,000 but whose cases have reached the phase of judicial execution, the statement, carried by the Jordan News Agency, Petra, said.

The Zakat Fund, which is in charge of supervising the execution of the initiative, has already raised JD3 million. 

The fund also coordinated with the Justice Ministry to repay the debts of 3,915 women whose cases meet the criteria set in cooperation with the Social Development Ministry. 

As such, these women will no longer face prosecution. 

In addition, a number of loaning institutions have dropped the charges against a number of gharimat in support of the King’s initiative. 

During his call-in to Jordan Television’s “Yise’d Sabahak”, the King affirmed the importance of resolving the gharimat case through a united, national effort, and announcing the launch of the initiative. 

“His Majesty was the first to support this national initiative by encouraging citizens and social institutions to unite and cooperate on the matter,” Abul Bassal said, adding that paying the women’s debts is one the forms of zakat ordained by Sharia (Islamic law).

Women whose debts exceed 1,000 will also receive help if additional funds are received, Abul Bassal pointed out, noting that the Zakat Fund is still receiving donations for the cause.