Manama: Kuwait’s Social Affairs Ministry has reminded charitable societies they have until July 17 to present their reports on the donations they received during Ramadan.
Ramadan, the ninth month on the lunar-based Islamic calendar, ended on June 25, and the ministry on July 2 wrote to all charitable societies with permits to receive donations and engage in fund-raising activities asking them to draft their reports and submit them within 15 days.
“The Ministry of Social Affairs is equidistant from all charitable societies and will not hesitate to apply the law whenever it is necessary,” Muneera Al Kindari, the head of charitable societies department, was quoted as saying by Kuwaiti daily Al Rai on Tuesday. “They have all to comply with the July 17 deadline and the rules will be applied against any society that does not present its report on time. Some societies have already submitted their reports and nobody can blame the others yet as the deadline is not here yet.”
Al Kindari denied claims that the measures by the ministry did not apply to the larger charitable groups.
“These are baseless allegations because the ministry deals with all societies that are given the proper license in the same way, regardless of their size or history,” she said.
Kuwait, which has one of the highest levels of charity work in the Muslim world, has been very strict about the work of charitable societies amid concerns they could be used for banned financial fund-raising activities or for foreign causes.
