A Doctor From Gaza, Rebuilding Her Career

A young doctor from Gaza sat in a quiet library in Australia, staring at an email that could change everything.

“Payment due by 1st July.”

Sara had trained as a doctor in Gaza under incredibly difficult conditions. When she came to Australia before the recent escalation, she hoped to rebuild her life, support her family, and continue serving people through medicine.

In Australia, Sara enrolled at university and received a small bursary. Her mother joined her on a humanitarian visa and received basic government support. On the outside, they looked like any other family in our suburbs. But behind the scenes, they were struggling to stay afloat.

To work as a doctor here, Sara needed to complete the Australian Medical Council (AMC) exams, registration, and an English test. The total fees came to several thousand dollars. With limited income, rent to pay, and family overseas depending on her, she simply could not afford it.

The deadline was approaching. If she missed it, she would lose her chance to sit the exams, delaying her ability to work and support her family. This is what need can look like in Australia: a capable, educated woman who looks just like us, but who cannot move forward without help. This is Zakat in Australia.

Your Zakat. Her Right.

When Sara reached out to National Zakat Foundation, she wasn’t asking for charity; in our faith, she was asking for her right.

Her application was carefully assessed, her documents reviewed, and it was confirmed that she was eligible for Zakat under the category of ibn sabeel, someone stranded away from home with minimal support.

With the help of Australian Muslims who chose to pay their Zakat locally, NZF covered her exam and registration fees in time for her to book the tests.

A short time later, Sara sent a message: she had passed her exams.

In shaa Allah, she will soon be working as a doctor in Australia, supporting her mother with dignity, helping her family still in hardship, and serving patients in our hospitals and clinics.

Building our local community.

Those in need of Zakat in Australia often look just like you: students, young professionals, new arrivals and families doing their best, but facing barriers they cannot cross alone.