The National Board of Zakat (BAZNAS) continues to create innovations in order to improve its quality service to poor people (mustahiq). One of the innovation is the Rice Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) facility. This ATM facility eases the mustahiq to fulfill their basic needs which are getting more difficult to be reached because of the inflation. Just like taking money from an ATM, the mustahiq who have been verified can take free rice from this ATM by using member card.

Chairman of BAZNAS, Prof. Dr. Bambang Sudibyo, MBA CA stated that this program is an innovation from BAZNAS in order to give an ease of service to the mustahiq. The machine itself is created by one of alumni of Bandung Technology Institute (Institut Teknologi Bandung or ITB). With this machine, the mustahiq can access rice donation from the Rice ATM in some location points.

“BAZNAS committed to adopt as many as service ideas from the society to optimally help the poor and needy people,” he said that when launching Rice ATM Program in Arthaloka buiding lobby, Jakarta. This event was held as part of ‘The 16th Anniversary of BAZNAS’ event.

The machine in Arthaloka building is a prototype of ATM machines which soon to be assembled in ten several location points in Jabodetabek, such as BAZNAS Office (Kebon Sirih Street No. 57 Jakarta) and  nine mosques which are cooperated with BAZNAS. Each unit of ATM can store up to 230 litres rice capacity, which can fulfill the needs of 120 households. Then, each unit can be refilled eight times per month.

Prof. Bambang also added that this program was held due to the high number of poverty in Indonesia which reached 28.01 millions people (Statictics Indonesia (BPS) per March 2016). In addition, Indonesia is one of the country with a severe hunger rate in the world which scored 21.9 in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) (International Food Policy Reasearch Institute, 2016). Moreover, the inflation rate in the beginning of January 2017 reached 4.7 percent, closed to the maximum limit from Central Bank of Indonesia (BI) which only amount to five percent (Deposit Insurance Agency (LPS), 2017).

“This food issue becomes necessary today, as the National Development Agency (Bappenas) stated that the malnutrition cases have reached thirty percent of the total number of children in this nation,” he said. This Rice ATM program is also in line with the BAZNAS support to continuing SDGs in order to eliminate the food shortages for poor people. (www.puskasbaznas.com)