Repairs of 1,000 mosques under way

The Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, Call and Guidance has started a SR 500 million project to repair 1,000 mosques across the Kingdom.
Undersecretary at the ministry, Tawfiq Al-Sudairy, who is also deputy chairman of the higher committee for the project, said in a statement to the Saudi Press Agency yesterday that the project is aimed at improving the spiritual and material ambience of mosques in the country. The committee has completed a study of mosques that need repairs and have invited tenders for the work, Al-Sudairy said.
“The moment the royal order was issued for the project, the minister of Islamic affairs set up a higher committee and subcommittees in the ministry’s provincial branches to identify mosques that require immediate repairs. The next step was to estimate the cost. The directors of provincial offices were informed of their allocations and told to follow certain guidelines to ensure the work is completed quickly and at the highest standards,” he said in the statement.
The branch offices should appoint consultancy firms to ensure contractors stick to required designs and specifications. “In fact, branch offices in several provinces have already signed contracts and contractors have started work,” he said.
The ministry has also set up a committee comprising members from branches, department of mosques and the department of administrative and technical affairs. He said some delays were caused by consultancy firms not completing studies on time.
The ministry also thanked Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah for supporting the project with the necessary funds. Undersecretary for administrative and technical affairs at the ministry, Abdullah Al-Howaimel, said the project will fulfill the ministry’s vision of serving the country’s mosques.