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Wa `alaykum As-Salamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
Dear questioner, thanks very much for your question, and we implore Allah Almighty to help us serve His cause and render our work for His Sake.
Islam recognizes the nature of gender. It establishes equality between men and women in front of Allah, in status and in their place in the society and in many other aspects of life. Yet, it stresses the fact that men and women have their God-given nature, which they should consider.
Both men and women play their roles that cannot be separated or overlooked, for life needs them together. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is reported to have said, “Women are the counterparts of men.”
Responding to the question, Dr. Sano Koutoub Moustapha, professor of jurisprudence and its principles at the International Islamic University, Malaysia, states the following:
Surely, Islam stands for cooperation between men and women, while observing and respecting the teachings of Islam in regard to contact between them. I strongly recommend you to have a woman, preferably an experienced one, in your committee. You need her to play her vital and important role in terms of communication with women. There is no legal ground for prohibiting women from participating in communal works.
Furthermore, the Qur'an calls upon Muslims, men and women, to work together and promote good deeds and to prevent bad deeds. Allah Almighty says: [And the believers, men and women, are protecting friends one of another; they enjoin the right and forbid the wrong, and they establish worship and they pay the poor-due, and they obey Allah and His Messenger. As for these, Allah will have mercy on them. Lo! Allah is Mighty, Wise] (At-Tawbah 9:71).
During the caliphate of `Umar ibn Al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) he appointed a woman as controller of the market. There are so many sources which allow women to take part in all da`wah activities.
Accordingly, you should allow women, one or two, to be active members of your committee. Hopefully, she will be a liaison between your committee and Muslim women.
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