Delineating the Islamic social elements in Takaful

• Main Authors: Muhammad Nasir, Nur I’ffah, Hassan, Rusni
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: IGI Global 2021
• Subjects: HG3368 Islamic Banking and Finance
• Online Access: http://irep.iium.edu.my/89256/1/89256_Delineating%20the%20Islamic%20social%20elements.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/89256/; https://www.igi-global.com/chapter/delineating-the-islamic-social-elements-in-takaful/274467

During the past decades, much attention has been given to the development and growth of the commercial and profitable side of takaful (takaful al-tijari), whereby this side of takaful focuses primarily on the personal benefits or interests of takaful participants. This excludes the poor as well as the vulnerable in society at large due to the fact that they are not the takaful participants and do not contribute to the overall tabarru’ fund. Having said so, the spirit that underlies these operational takaful efforts should not be overlooked. The takaful participants are in fact part of the society themselves; therefore, ensuring the well-being of the lives of others should be considered as an ibadah, and that responsibility should be upheld by all especially Muslims. This study aims to explore the social element in commercial takaful (takaful al-tijari) and how it can be amplified to contribute to the Islamic social finance ecosystem. This study adopts desk research as its methodology, where relevant past works of literature of secondary data such as books, journal articles, reports, and websites are reviewed and interpreted. This study appears as an attempt to discuss and highlight the opportunities for commercial takaful to contribute further to the Islamic social finance ecosystem. Findings of this study suggest that there is room for commercial takaful to contribute further to the Islamic social finance ecosystem.