The Evolution of Muslim Philanthropists and Faith-Based Organizations
The initial spectrum of Muslim NGOs in Ghana was rather limited until the first decade of the twenty-first century. Except for some national organizations, such as the Muslim Relief Association Ghana (MURAG), Muslim Family Counselling Services (MFCS), and Islamic Council for Development and Humanitarian Services (ICODEHS), most Muslim faith-based organizations were linked to ethnic or sectarian groups, namely the various Tijani and Salafi associations or the Lebanese, Ahmadi, Shia or Ibadi communities.
In the early 2000s, Muslim students who had studied in the Middle East made contacts with local philanthropists and established local branches of international Muslim organizations when they returned to Ghana. For example, the Islamic Research and Reformation Centre is a branch of the Darul-Ifta, whereas the Centre for the Distribution of Islamic Books represents the World Assembly of Muslim Youth. The Ahul-Bait (Shia) and Istiqaama communities, respectively, have links to Iranian and Omani organizations.
However, many local Muslim NGOs did not have any links to international Muslim NGOs, or did not receive any assistance from Muslim countries. As a result, these local faith-based organizations had an erratic range of activities and worked only in a particular locality. The majority were found in the southern parts of the country, primarily in Accra and Kumasi; only a few of them existed in the North, mainly in Tamale and other centers with Muslim populations.
The Rise of Muslim Religious Entrepreneurs
The number of local Muslim philanthropists has swollen during the last two decades, assumably at least in part reflecting the emergence of a (relatively) affluent Muslim middle-class in the wake of the booming Ghanaian economy during the 2010s.
Sheikh Mustapha Ibrahim is the most esteemed among them, whose life-long engagement has earned him several high-ranking and influential positions within the Ghanaian Muslim community in the past two decades. Other noticeable scholars-cum-founders of NGOs are:
- Sheikh Alhaji Baba Issa (Muslim Family Counselling Services)
- Sheikh Abdurrahman Muhammad (Ansarudeen organization)
- Sheikh Abdul Nasiru-Deen (Paragon Foundation)
- Sheikh Firdaus Ladan (Lean On Me Foundation)
- Sheikh Alhassan Nuhu (Faith Dawah Foundation)
- Sheikh Alhaji Yusif Dauda Garibah (Adabiyya Islamic Society)
Sheikh Abubakar Ali Napari and Alhaji Salamu Adam are Muslim business entrepreneurs turned philanthropists. Napari is the CEO of Napari Company Limited and the founder of The Light Foundation, while Adamu heads the Afro Arab Company and funds local social development initiatives.
Some Muslim scholars have also founded homeopathic clinics, such as Sheikh Dr Amin Bonsu and Sheikh Rashid Hussein Salwat.
While first-generation NGOs were solely established by Muslim scholars, some of the second-generation ones were founded by local Muslim civil society activists, business entrepreneurs and politicians. Reflecting the rise of a Muslim middle-class and the emergence of a small segment of Muslim High-Net-Worth Individuals (HNWI) during the last two decades, many of these NGOs still adhere to a typical narrow dawatist agenda: mosques, education, water and Ramadan/Iftar/Qurban projects alongside support for orphans, widows, and the needy.
The trajectory of Abdul Mannan Ibrahim in Kumasi illustrates how many founders of business enterprises have turned into philanthropists. His Al-Mannan Charity Foundation, established in 2010, has expanded its activities manifold, ranging from campaigns to raise funds for medical and hospital bills to arranging local Iftar, Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Ahda parties for orphans and less privileged children.
Similarly, the Society for the Assistance for Orphans and Disabled (SAFOAD), founded by Haji Abubakar Yakubu Batalima in the late 1990s, has made headlines for its annual provisions for orphans during Muslim festivals, donations to persons with disabilities, and investments in entrepreneurial skills training for youths.
The Alhaji Yusif Ibrahim Foundation, established in 2000 by the Muslim multi-sectoral business tycoon Alhaji Yusif Ibrahim, has operated for years in Kumasi, offering scholarships to needy students and sponsoring annual free health checks.
The Karima Charity Foundation, established by Mohammed Aminu Osman (a.k.a. Awudu Sofa Salaga) in 2010, has evolved into a major donor organization, constructing the Karima Educational Complex in Kumasi, consisting of a kindergarten, primary and junior high school, a public library, an ICT centre and a science lab. In addition, the Foundation engages in HIV/AIDS prevention initiatives, health education programmes, and renders support to Islamic and secular orphanages and schools.
The Yaasalam Opportunity Center, the Corporate Responsibility Arm of the Afro Arab Group of Companies, is part of the philanthropic outreach of Alhaji Salamu Adamu to deprived Zongo communities. Its objective is to provide humanitarian relief, promote education, youth empowerment, capacity building, entrepreneurship development, and job creation programmes.
However, most Muslim entrepreneurs do not necessarily establish an NGO to direct their donations. Alhaji Seidu Agongo, for instance, built a 30-bed capacity block for the Child Emergency Unit of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra and actively enhanced the empowerment of poor people by providing them with startup capital and equipment to conduct small-scale businesses.
The Intersection of Muslim Politics and Philanthropy
The increased engagement of Muslims in party politics and statal business enterprises, as well as their nomination into high-ranking ministerial and governmental positions, has created a new form of Muslim religious entrepreneur in Ghana – that of a politician turning into a philanthropist.
Alhaji Hanan Abdul-Wahab Aludiba, the Executive Officer of the National Food Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO) and a leading member of the NPP, is the founder and chair of the Aludiba Foundation. The Foundation has made headlines for arranging free medical screenings and surgeries, donating medical supplies, and supporting education, business development, agriculture, and health projects in the Upper East Region.
Similarly, Hajia Humu Awudu, a (former) member of the NPP Youth Wing and NPP Parliamentary Candidate of the Wa Central Constituency, established the Hajia Humu Foundation (HHF) in 2018. The Foundation has provided scholarships, including for students to study medicine in Cuba, and donated material for the improvement/rehabilitation of sanitation, water and education infrastructure in Wa and surroundings.
The Aliu Mahama Foundation (AMF), established by the late Vice President Alhaji Aliu Mahama in 2011, has set up an e-library in the Northern Region, launched a medical outreach programme for Ghana’s prisons, and invested in the shea industry in Yendi Municipality.
The Samira Empowerment and Humanitarian Projects (SEHP), founded and managed by Haija Samira Bawumia, Second Lady of Ghana, seeks to empower the underprivileged in Ghana through social intervention projects in education, health, and women empowerment.
The Emergence of Muslim Social Media Influencers and Youth-Led Initiatives
With the expansion of tech entrepreneurship in Ghana during the 2010s, a new group of Muslim religious entrepreneurs entered the arena and transformed the Muslim NGO landscape. This group comprises youth leaders, TV celebrities and social media influencers who primarily use social media as their main tool for advocating, connecting, inspiring, networking, and rallying their followers near and afar.
Examples include Umul Hatiyya Ibrahim Mahama (Princess Umul Hatiyya Foundation), Kansar Abdulai (HajiaPosh Foundation), Hajia Wassila Mohammad (Haske Bisa Kan Haske—Nuur fauka nuur), Hajia Ibrahim Sadiq (Kuburah Diamonds Foundation), Issah Agyeman (Essa Ajeman Charity Foundation), Issah Ibrahim Yunus (Teacher IB Jihad Foundation), Humu Gaage (All Rise Initiative), Haija Aisha Abdallah Ibrahim (Sisters’ Hangout Ghana), and Ibrahim Baba Maltiti (Problems Shared Problems Solved).
The Meryam Zakariya Yahya Foundation (MZYF), founded by author Meryam Zakariya Yahya, stands out as a unique initiative addressing mental illness among young women in Zongo communities alongside humanitarian relief projects.
Khalifa Faith’s Peace Dawah Media (PDW) has emerged as an influential Muslim blogger and vlogger, using social media to launch and run social welfare projects and advocacy campaigns. Similarly, Sheikh Firdaus Ladan, CEO of Lean On Me Foundation, has praised Khalifa Faith’s “resilience” and “indiscrimination” in his philanthropic work.
The Rise of Formal Muslim Initiatives and Associations
Formal Muslim initiatives by associations, groups or movements have existed for some decades, although the majority tend to be restricted to a specific locality or community. Their lifespan has usually been rather short, as many initiatives, especially Muslim youth associations, tended to be short-lived affairs and collapsed or became dormant after a short span of activism.
The Federation of Muslim Women’s Association of Ghana (FOMWAG), formed in 1992, ranks among the oldest still operative bodies, counting various local groups, regional chapters and international branches. FOMWAG seldom makes national headlines, but its various postings on Facebook demonstrate the wide range of activities the Association and its member groups have undertaken, including sensitization seminars, health education and personal development projects targeting Muslim girls and young females.
Achievers Ghana, established in 2001 as Achievers Book Club and renamed in 2015, focuses on providing reading and mentor programmes, scholarships, ICT and career skills for girls in disadvantaged areas of Ghana. The NGO has received awards and donations for its scholarship programme through fundraising campaigns on social media.
The Global Muslimah Dilemma (GMD), Islamic Centre For Future Women (ICFW), Muslimah Mentorship Network (MMN), Young Women Leaders Network (YWLN), Al-Hayat Foundation, Eemaan Empowerment Project, Humanitarian Headway, Sisters’ Hangout, Ideal Muslimah Network (IMN)/Village Connect Africa Foundation (VCA), Awakening Muslimah, Tiyumba Hope Foundation (THF), Pagba Saha Foundation, and the Sung Foundation (SUFOD) are examples of more recent women-led Muslim NGOs and CSOs.
Many of these initiatives address issues such as menstrual hygiene, health education, women empowerment, and the prevention of child and forced marriages, alongside running skills training workshops, career guidance, and mentorship programmes.
The Proliferation of Dawatist Muslim NGOs
The number of local daʿwatist Muslim NGOs seems to have mushroomed during the last decade, indicating the ongoing NGO-isation of the Muslim sphere in Ghana. Most of them use social media in their Iftar, Ramadan and Qurban/Udhiya fundraising campaigns.
The Kumasi-based Paragon Foundation, for instance, started as a daʿwa movement among students in 2005 but has since branched out to provide education and training in communication, entrepreneurship, leadership and managerial skills. The Organization for Muslim Unity Ghana (OMUG) in Tamale, the Fakhrul Islam Foundation (FIF) in Sunyani, and the Islamic Radio Foundation (IRF) in Tamale are other examples of local daʿwa organisations.
Many of these local daʿwa organisations make use of social media to solicit external donations and funding for mosques, madrasas, primary/JHS buildings, borehole projects and humanitarian relief. Some have successfully attracted funds from external/foreign donors, usually Saudi philanthropists, for their projects.
The educational complex project of Nurul Bayaan, consisting of a senior high school, orphanage, clinic and mosque, illustrates how Ghanaian Muslim NGOs use social media to link local and diaspora members in Germany and mobilize donations for their ambitious plans.
Similarly, Zongo youth groups, whether operated by an imam or linked to a particular Muslim sect, disseminate video recordings of sermons and Muslim talk shows, thereby creating a multiplier effect of the actual numbers of local Ghanaian imams and Muslim preachers. Calls for donations, fundraising campaigns or mobilisation of members for ad hoc or long-term community development projects and clean-up exercises inspire readers, viewers and listeners beyond the Zongo to join the group, assist or to donate to their projects.
Zongo Youth Groups and the Quest for Self-Empowerment
The formation and expansion of Zongo and Muslim youth groups has become a nationwide phenomenon in Ghana. Most youth groups and networks tend to have a rather short lifespan on Facebook, perhaps correlating with their activities in real life.
Some Zongo youth groups, like the COZY (Change for Zongo Youth), address not only Muslims but seek to bring about positive change in Zongo communities through education, talent development, entrepreneurship training, leadership training and youth activism.
Other groups, such as the Voice of Zongo Youth Foundation, Ghana Islamic Jihad Foundation, and the Zongo Insight, vehemently criticize the dominant perception in Ghana that the Zongos are criminal hotspots and slums, calling for a new, positive self-representation of the Zongo communities.
The Kumasi-based ZongoVationHub is an inspiring example of Muslim self-empowerment, organizing a series of IT skills and training activities, including the Zongo Coders Program, the Zongo Technician Program, the Zongo Kids Coding Bootcamp and the Zongo Women in Tech.
The Zongo Youth for Unity and Sustainable Development of Ghana (ZYUSDG) and the Zongo Focus have rallied their members for community services and health promotion activities, usually before or during Ramadan, while the Zongo Hausa Youth Association of Ghana and the Zongo Inspiration Team have focused on empowering Zongo youth through skills development and entrepreneurship training.
The Role of International Muslim Charities
International Muslim charities started their operations in Ghana in response to the drought and famine that hit the country’s northern parts in 1983. The first phase of their activism was linked to daʿwa, resulting in the construction of mosques and prayer sites.
The second phase, starting in the early 2000s, saw the advent of Western Muslim charities and Islamic solidarity-based organisations, such as the Zakat Foundation of America and the UK charities Al-Muntada Aid and Muslim Aid. Many Arab and Gulf charities, such as Direct Aid and Qatar Charities, also expanded their activities in Ghana during this period.
The third and contemporary phase, starting around 2012, witnessed a reconstitution of the landscape of Muslim INGOs operating in Ghana, most notably the advent and massive intervention of Turkish Muslim charities.
Organizations like Qatar Charity, Direct Aid, and the Emirates Red Crescent have significantly expanded their presence and activities in Ghana over the past decade. They have funded water and sanitation projects, educational facilities, Ramadan/Qurban distributions, and humanitarian relief, often in collaboration with local Ghanaian Muslim NGOs and government agencies.
The data provided by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) indicates the scale of financial assistance rendered by some of the larger Arab/Gulf charities, though the information is incomplete. Kuwaiti charities like Rahma International Society, Sheikh Abdullah Al-Nouri Charity Society, and the Kuwaiti Red Crescent Society have also been active in Ghana for decades, funding educational complexes, water projects, and Ramadan/Eid distributions.
Overall, the evolving landscape of Muslim NGOs in Ghana reflects the growing influence of Muslim philanthropy, the rise of Muslim religious entrepreneurs, the increasing engagement of Muslim politicians in development initiatives, and the expanding presence of international Muslim charities in the country. These trends highlight the dynamic and multifaceted nature of the Muslim civil society landscape in Ghana.
To stay up to date on the latest developments in the water and sanitation sector, be sure to visit the Joint Action for Water website. Their blog features insightful articles and case studies from experienced practitioners in the field.
