Jakarta (ANTARA) – Indonesia’s National Alms Agency disbursed nearly 900 million rupiah (US$51,000) through three programs supporting businesses at Islamic boarding schools and mosques in Gresik, East Java, as it expands grassroots economic empowerment.At a Gresik pesantren on Saturday, Baznas distributed 350 million rupiah (US$19,900) to develop seven pesantren-based grocery stores under Zmart and 500 million rupiah (US$28,400) for five mosques under the ultra-micro business program, BUMi.“Since 2022, Baznas has allocated tens of billions of rupiah for the Zmart and BUMi programs,” Baznas Head Sodik Mudjahid said in a statement cited Sunday.The event also included 21 million rupiah (US$1,200) for a circular-economy entrepreneurship initiative helping pesantren students develop businesses focused on crop cultivation.Mudjahid said the three programs are designed to help grassroots communities achieve financial independence through businesses centered on Islamic boarding schools and mosques.Baznas is working with the Coordinating Ministry for Community Empowerment, Cooperatives Ministry and Danantara Indonesia to expand financing access for such businesses, he said.The BUMi program has reached 10,641 beneficiaries and 213 mosques across 35 provinces, aiming to accelerate development of Indonesia’s Islamic economy from the grassroots, Mudjahid said.“Our hope is that these initiatives will enable beneficiaries in East Java to elevate their status from alms recipients to alms givers,” he said.Coordinating Minister for Community Empowerment Muhaimin Iskandar, also attending, said empowering pesantrens could make them key drivers of poverty reduction and economic activity.He described pesantrens as “the ecosystems most deep-rooted in Indonesian society,” highlighting their potential to improve living standards and strengthen community-based economic development.Iskandar said he hoped pesantrens and mosques would play larger roles in national development while generating broader economic benefits for surrounding communities.