Uganda National Mosque
Uganda National Mosque
- The Uganda National Mosque, also known as Gaddafi Mosque, is a Musjid located on Kampala Hill in the Old Kampala area of Kampala, Uganda. It is the largest Musjid in East Africa, in a country where, as of 2014, 13.7% of the population is Muslim. Completed in 2006, it can seat up to 15,000 musallis and hold another 1,100 in the gallery, while the terrace can cater for another 3,500. Colonel Muammar Gaddafi of Libya commissioned the Musjid as a gift to Uganda, for the benefit of the Muslim population. Uganda has many Musjids, but this one is a skyscraper Musjid.
- The construction of the Musjid began in 1972 by Idi Amin and was initially called the Old Kampala National Mosque. Construction stopped in 1976 during a period of heightened political instability, and in 1979, after Amin was deposed, it seemed like the Musjid’s fate was sealed. However, in 2001, Gaddafi expressed a willingness to help complete it as a gift to the Islamic faith in Uganda.
- The completed Musjid was officially opened in June 2007 under the name Gaddafi National Mosque, and it housed the head offices of the Uganda Muslim Supreme Council. It was renamed “Uganda National Mosque” in 2013 following the death of Colonel Gaddafi, as the new Libyan administration was “reluctant to rehabilitate the Musjid under the old name.”
- The Musjid’s minaret contains 272 stairs to reach the top.