RIYADH: Saleh Al-Wohaibi, secretary-general of the World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY), on Saturday emphasized the need for greater and organized efforts to take care of expatriates who embrace Islam in the Kingdom.
He said many of the more than 200 cooperative dawa centers across the Kingdom had failed to take care of converts. “This has resulted in many of them returning back to their old ways,” he said.
“The role of dawa centers should not end with the announcement of expatriates embracing Islam, they should also conduct intensive courses to educate the converts more about the religion,” he said.
Al-Wohaibi was speaking at a ceremony organized by the Cooperative Dawa and Guidance Center in Badeea to mark the graduation of 1,212 students who attended an intensive Islamic educational program named “Aslamtu Faallimnee” (I have embraced Islam, now teach me).
He commended the educational and dawa efforts of the Badeea center, adding that similar centers are established in other parts of the world.
Fouad Al-Rasheed, CEO of the center, said his organization’s educational program has attracted a large number of new Muslims.
Muhammad Al-Masoud, director of the course, said the program was aimed at deepening the religious knowledge of converts. “More than 11,000 students from 41 countries have benefited from the course in the past seven years,” he said.
The program targets Muslims and non-Muslims who speak English, Arabic, Tagalog, Urdu, Tamil, Indonesian and Bengali.
