Accountability Mechanisms for Awqaf Institutions : Lessons Learned from the History

The last few years have witnessed the revitalisation of waqf institutions around the world. There is a growing awareness concerning the need for waqf revival in order to create a better society. The Muslim communities have realized that waqf possesses the potential to be an effective system for poverty eradication. Along with the revival of this historic institution, there is a call for greater accountability of the trustee in managing waqf. Despite the unprecedented call for accountability of waqf institutions, studies regarding waqf accountability are limited. Few attempts actually have been made to address accountability issue in waqf. However, most of the previous studies only focused on accounting. In fact, accountability is broader than that. This paper, therefore, aims to seek evidence as to how accountability in awqāf should be practised. In so doing, this paper explores and reviews the existing studies on waqf, particularly how accountability had been practised in the history of waqf