Sadka-E-Zaria
Capital as Sadka-E-Zaria
KMRF offers financial assistance that does not require repayment, with the aim of helping impoverished families in Bangladesh work towards self-reliance without the burden of debt. The programme gives that work the form of Sadka-E-Zaria, or continuing charity, so that its benefit continues.
Financial support as continuing charity
This programme responds to a need that KMRF describes among people living in poverty. To support their families, many are forced to borrow money at interest, trapping them in a cycle of debt. Breaking free from this cycle is essential for improving their lives and promoting sustainable development.
By offering financial assistance without requiring repayment, KMRF aims to help individuals become self-reliant without the burden of debt. The assistance gives recipients something they can put to work, to establish or strengthen a livelihood.
The programme is rooted in KMRF’s Sufi inspiration and the teachings of the Holy Quran. It joins a practical concern for people facing financial hardship with the Islamic understanding of Sadka-E-Zaria, in which the benefit of charity continues and its spiritual reward can extend beyond the giver’s lifetime.
Within this understanding, service to others and the hope of sawab, or spiritual reward, belong together. KMRF offers the assistance as charity, seeking Allah’s pleasure through work intended to benefit people in need. The religious purpose of the programme is expressed in the hadith and Quran passage below.
The individual stories on this page show how assistance has been used in different circumstances, from rearing goats to running a betel-leaf business. They give space to the work, difficulties and hopes described by the people involved.
Continuing charity in the hadith
A hadith of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) identifies continuing charity among the deeds whose benefit endures after death.
“When a person dies, their deeds come to an end except for three: Sadka-e-Zaria (a continuous charity), beneficial knowledge, or a righteous child who prays for them.”
Giving in the cause of Allah
Surah Al-Baqarah describes the multiplication of reward for those who spend their wealth in the cause of Allah.
“The example of those who spend their wealth in the cause of Allah is that of a grain that sprouts into seven ears, each bearing one hundred grains. And Allah multiplies [the reward even more] to whoever He wills. For Allah is All-Bountiful, All-Knowing.”
Meet the people behind the work
KMRF’s Chairman, Khwaja Tipu Sultan, says that he does not want even a single family to stay impoverished. Abdul Hannan, Sunil Sarkar, Amirjan Bibi and Md. Lebu Mia speak from the places where they live and work. They discuss financial difficulty, tending goats, running a business and what they hope to do next.
Watch their original interviews in Bengali, with English translations available beside each film.
Sadka-E-Zaria
Abdul Hannan: tending the goats
“After receiving two goats, my situation has improved somewhat.”
Abdul HannanTranslated from Bengali.
Read the English translation
Assalamu alaikum. My name is Abdul Hannan. My home is in Khakkanda, Matlab Uttar, Chandpur, Cumilla [place wording unclear]. I was in considerable financial difficulty.
After receiving two goats from the Khwaja Mozammel Hoque (R:) Foundation, my situation has improved somewhat. These goats are mine.
Unclear words and passages are marked in the translation.
Read the Bengali transcript
Abdul Hannan introduces himself beside the goats he received from the foundation. He says he had been in considerable financial difficulty before receiving the two animals.
The film moves between his account and the work of feeding the goats. He describes his situation as having improved somewhat, then points out that the goats beside him are his.
Sadka-E-Zaria
Sunil Sarkar: help through hardship
Read the English translation
With help from the Khwaja Mozammel Hoque (R:) Foundation, I bought two goats. They have had young [the exact count and wording are unclear]. I have not received this kind of help before.
I have struggled a great deal in my life and am still struggling. Through this help, and with your prayers [part of the phrase is unclear], I am bearing that hardship.
Unclear words and passages are marked in the translation.
Read the Bengali transcript
Sunil Sarkar, in Sreemangal, describes buying two goats with help from the foundation. Standing beside the animals, he says he had not received this kind of help before.
He does not hide the hardship. The struggle, he says, has marked his life and has not stopped. He holds together the help that reached him and the difficulties that remain.
Hear him describe the support and see the goats beside a house.
Sadka-E-Zaria
Amirjan Bibi: a hope for what comes next
“If there is enough money, I could buy a cow.”
Amirjan BibiTranslated from Bengali.
Read the English translation
I pray that Allah grants [the opening wording is unclear]. If there is more [the phrase is unclear], we will receive more. I pray for this one to have two and that one two [the following count and sale/breeding wording are unclear]. If the first one has one, there would be five [conditional wording].
[The conversation continues about what might be sold and the money that could result; several dialect words are unclear.] If there is enough money, a cow could be bought. [A final exchange about the house is unclear.]
Unclear words and passages are marked in the translation.
Read the Bengali transcript
Beside her goats in Kamalganj, Amirjan Bibi talks about the young the animals might have and the money that might follow. Her conversation turns towards a possible next step: buying a cow if enough money becomes available.
She speaks about that possibility as a hope, with prayers for what may come. Watch the conversation to hear her describe it in Bengali.
Sadka-E-Zaria
Md. Lebu Mia: a betel-leaf business
“I received Tk 2,500 in capital for a betel-leaf business.”
Md. Lebu MiaTranslated from Bengali.
Read the English translation
I received Tk 2,500 in capital for a betel-leaf business. Through the blessing of this grant, when I go to market, I earn Tk 500, Tk 700 or Tk 1,000.
From that Tk 2,500 in capital, I now run a business of Tk 100,000 [the period and basis of this amount are not specified]. In this business, I have no want.
Unclear words and passages are marked in the translation.
Read the Bengali transcript
Md. Lebu Mia describes receiving Tk 2,500 in capital for a betel-leaf business. The film follows betel leaves being prepared and offered for sale, alongside his account of taking the business to market.
He speaks about what he earns on market visits and the business he has built from that capital. Watch the interview to hear the figures he gives and his description of what the work means to him.
His story offers a different view of livelihood support: working capital put to use in a small trading business.
Livelihood support through the years
KMRF’s programme figures list 334 recipients in 2024 and 264 in 2023. Earlier years are included in the archive below.
Explore a year’s figures alongside the individual stories, or contact KMRF about a particular programme year.
Sadka-E-Zaria recipients
| Programme year | Recipients |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 334 |
| 2023 | 264 |
| 2022 | 270 |
| 2021 | 319 |
| 2020 | Not available |
Show earlier years, 2019–2001
| Programme year | Recipients |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 294 |
| 2018 | 140 |
| 2017 | 103 |
| 2016 | 149 |
| 2015 | Not confirmed |
| 2014 | 143 |
| 2013 | 143 |
| 2012 | 175 |
| 2011 | 189 |
| 2010 | 209 |
| 2009 | 168 |
| 2008 | 162 |
| 2007 | 166 |
| 2006 | 177 |
| 2005 | Not available |
| 2004 | 242 |
| 2003 | 163 |
| 2002 | 67 |
| 2001 | 41 |
Figures are shown by programme year. Unconfirmed or unavailable entries are marked.
Ask about Sadka-E-Zaria
For information about the programme or current support arrangements, contact KMRF. If your enquiry concerns an earlier programme year, include the year or the person’s name where relevant.