1. Islamiat Pakistan Studies Jazib Iqtidar BBA-4 (B) 01-111081-060 Q. What are some of the major problems being faced by Pakistan? Poverty In Pakistan The most important and sensitive issue not only for our self but for the whole world. Poverty can cause other social problems like theft, bribe, corruption, adultery, lawlessness, injustice. To eradicate the evils of society we have to fight with poverty. We can't control theft by enrolling thousands of police men. Corruption and injustice can't come to an end through tight legislation but by demolishing poverty. A low level of domestic income for an individual results in lack of access to education, health care, and other communal facilities like lake of sanitation, transportation and communication. The poverty of thought is the major social problem. To eradicate poverty in Pakistan we have to fight with the causes and factors of poverty. Unless the causes and factors of poverty will be settled the poverty will never end. Ignorance is one of the important aspect of poverty. Ignorance is lake of information or lake knowledge. In this modern age of scientific revolution we are far behind in the education and most importantly scientific education. Our literacy rate is less than fifty percent the female education rate is even in miserable state. The right kind of education to the individuals is the solution of poverty. The right kind of education to the farmer is the knowledge of scientific ways of agriculture. A progressive and professional thinking is required in the farmers. Poverty can't come to an end unless we will spend much larger share of our GDP to the education sector. We have to open more schools especially in our villages and every muslim should pay Zakat as it a system created by Allah to eradicate the evil in a society. Importance of Zakat: Many Muslims around the world either don’t pay Zakat, pay it reluctantly or cut corners to minimize the due amount. Some Muslims living in high tax areas feel Zakat overburdens them after paying direct and indirect taxes. This attitude is of course due to weakness in faith as many Muslims have not understood the principles of Zakat and what good it can do for the Muslim community.There is so much wealth in the Muslim world that if all Muslims, on whom Zakat is due, pay their fair share and it is distributed honestly to the deserving than no Muslim will face extreme poverty and hunger as we see in so many countries these days. It will also eliminate the need for Western aid which usually comes with strings attached and sometimes for the purpose of spreading Christianity. Let us try to understand some principles about Zakat. Zakat is one of the five pillars which constitute the foundation of Islam(other four being declaration of belief, prayer 5 times a day, fasting in Ramadan and pilgrimage to Makkah if health and resources permit). Hardly ever is faith mentioned in the Quran without it being associated with prayer and Zakat and the need to fulfill both duties. So much is the importance of Zakat in Islam that it has been mentioned in eighty two places in the Quran in close connection with prayer. Prayer and Zakat are given precedence over other types of Islamic worship because prayer, which is offered purely for Allah’s sake, has an important role in restraining people from committing sinful and evil deeds, while Zakat has a greatly beneficial effect on both individuals and the society. It is obligatory upon every Muslim, in possession of wealth above a prescribed limit, to pay Zakat. There are many advantages of which some are mentioned below: 1-It meets the needs of the poor of the society 2-It strengthens the good relation between the rich and the poor 3-It cleanse and purify the wealth 4-It promotes open-handedness, generosity and sympathy in a Muslim towards the needy person 5-It draws Allah’s blessing; causes increase in wealth and replacement of spent wealth as promised in the Quran “And whatsoever you spend of anything(in Allah’s cause), He will replace it. He