As this year's Ramadan has started, PRIO researchers Kaja Borchgrevink and Marta Bivand Erdal have published an op ed in the Norwegian daily Klassekampen titled 'The Invisible Aid' [Den usynlige bistanden]. They write about religious alms, zakat and sadqa, donated by muslims for charitable purposes. The volumes of muslim charity are hard to estimate, but even based on low estimates this represents 15 times the annual amount of internatonal humanitarian assistance. Most of these funds are not captured by international statistics on aid - and are as such invisible.

Please see the attached file (in Norwegian)