PANDEMIC , which has become a scourge throughout the world, has had a serious impact on many people. A phenomenon that was initially a general health crisis has turned into a multidimensional crisis, one of which is in the economic sector. In Indonesia, this economic impact has been clearly felt. According to records from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), the Indonesian economy in the first quarter of 2020 only grew 2.97 percent. This clearly shows that there is an economic slowdown as restrictions on community activities have begun to be implemented, such as recommendations for working from home and PSBB, since the announcement of the first case of Covid-19 in Indonesia on March 2.
This is in line with predictions from the IMF International Monetary Fund that the Indonesian economy will only grow around 0.5 percent in 2020, but could rise to around 8 percent in 2021 as the economic recovery continues. So, it is not surprising that recently the government has been pushing a discourse called the new normal or in other words the new normal. This discourse means that community activities, especially economic activities, are expected to run normally again, but by paying attention to various health protocols to prevent the transmission of Covid-19, for which no vaccine has yet been found. Attention to health protocols is important considering that positive Covid-19 cases in Indonesia have exceeded 100,000 cases so that opening up economic activity should not give rise to new clusters of virus transmission.
Regardless of the controversy that accompanies the discourse above, economic activity needs to be carried out, of course by adapting to Covid-19 conditions. Slowing economic activity has serious impacts, both for entrepreneurs and workers. Especially for the working class, the impact of this pandemic has been felt, especially for informal workers who depend on daily income and employees who have been laid off due to disrupted business activities. If economic conditions are not improved, it is feared that there will be an explosion of unemployment which could worsen conditions of poverty and social inequality in Indonesia.
The new normal period will be marked by the promotion of a number of health protocol behaviors in public places, such as maintaining a minimum distance of 1 meter, using masks, checking body temperature, and getting into the habit of washing hands with soap or hand sanitizer. Of course, this cannot be separated from the current condition of the pandemic which is very susceptible to transmission through unhygienic hand touching and entering through the respiratory tract. In other words, there are a number of things that need to be adapted by the wider community so that activities continue to run normally so that economic recovery can be realized, but on the other hand, it is hoped that this pandemic will not spread.
However, considering that the Covid-19 disaster is not only a public health crisis, but also has a significant impact on the economy, it is also necessary to promote a "new normal" in the economy. This is because under normal economic conditions, in Indonesia generally economic growth in recent years has been at least 5 percent, there are still problems related to community welfare, especially poverty and social inequality.
Based on a BPS release based on the national socio-economic survey (Susenas) in September 2019, the number of poor people in Indonesia was recorded at 24.8 million people or around 9.22 percent of the total population. Apart from that, in the same period, the level of social inequality in Indonesia as measured using the Gini ratio was 0.382, indicating inequality at the middle level. Apart from that, in September 2018 BPS noted that the expenditure structure was dominated by the 20 percent highest income group who contributed 45.56 percent of public consumption expenditure. Meanwhile, 40 percent of the middle class and 40 percent of the lowest class contributed 36.96 percent and 17.47 percent respectively.
Therefore, it is not enough for future economic behavior to rely solely on market mechanisms, but there needs to be strengthening of social aspects. This is because this pandemic condition teaches that when the wheels of the economy are not running as they should, mutual cooperation behavior and social or philanthropic donations such as zakat and waqf can be a solution to meet people's needs in times of emergency, especially for the poor.
In other words, market-based economic mechanisms that are oriented towards efficiency and growth must be complemented by philanthropic mechanisms to ensure that equal distribution of prosperity in society can be realized. However, this philanthropy mechanism should not cause the recipient communities to depend on donor assistance, but must be based on empowerment and sustainability. So, it is hoped that this philanthropy mechanism can become a social safety network for society in the long term.
In the author's view, waqf in the new normal period must become a new norm in society. Productive management of waqf, if optimized, can drive the economy and the profits generated can be directed to become a source of sustainable financing for the education, health, and community economic empowerment sectors which are expected to create equitable and comprehensive prosperity in society.
Waqf as a new normal today requires a number of things to run optimally. First, the use of information technology in waqf management needs to be improved. This covers at least several aspects of waqf, such as outreach to the community, a digital-based waqf donation payment system, and a waqf management information system.
Second, the synergy between waqf management institutions and the government needs to be strengthened so that several crucial aspects in waqf management, such as synergy in terms of data on mauquf 'alaih (waqf beneficiaries) with data on recipients of government assistance, and also synergy between waqf management programs and the planned development goals government is increasingly optimal. Apart from that, amendments to the 16 year old Waqf Law which can accommodate current waqf management practices are also expected to strengthen waqf in Indonesia. As a new norm, waqf is no longer just a donation to help others, but must be able to strengthen the national economy and improve the welfare of society.
Third, waqf also needs to be synergized with the national development agenda, one of which is sustainable development goals (SDGs). This means that waqf should be in line with the SDGs movement, especially the aspect of providing waqf benefits to development sectors, such as education, health, poverty alleviation, job creation and environmental issues. Specifically for the health sector, productive management of waqf is needed to strengthen post-pandemic national health resilience, such as procuring PPE and medicines so that the provision of health services does not compromise national economic independence. (*)
*) Raditya Sukmana, Professor of Islamic economics, researcher at the Center of Islamic Social Finance Intelligence (CISFI) FEB Universitas Airlangga
Source: https://www.jawapos.com/opini/03/08/2020/wakaf-as-kelaziman-baru/
