Male: A long-awaited King Salman Mosque, the largest mosque in the Maldives, is set to open soon.
The mosque was funded by the custodian of the two holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud who has donated approximately $25 million.
It is worth noting that the acting undersecretary of the ministry of Islamic Affairs, Call and Guidance, Sheikh Awad Al-Enezi headed the Kingdom’s delegation in the official meeting to discuss arrangements for the opening of the mosque in the presence of a number of officials in the two countries on August 30, 2021.
The mosque consists of 6 floors and can accommodate more than 10,000 worshippers. It includes multi-purpose halls, an international library, a center for teaching the Holy Quran, classrooms, and a conference hall.
As per the media reports, it consists of 5 minarets representing the five pillars of Islam. The mosque also contains a parking area of 44,100 square feet.
It was announced in 2016 and the construction began in early 2018. The government had previously planned to open the mosque in early 2020, and later, scheduled to open in the month of Ramadan—this year, but it was postponed due to the emerging COVID-19 pandemic.
The constructor is a Turkish contractor—Turmaks Group which has also built Treetop Hospital in the capital’s suburb of Hulhumalé.
