BISHKEK: Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah, and Guidance has organized the largest Holy Quran memorization competition for girls in Kyrgyzstan, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported on Tuesday.
The event was organized in cooperation with the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Kyrgyzstan. It is the first edition of the competition at a national level with Saudi Arabia’s support.
This year’s edition of the competition started in seven provinces and two cities with the participation of 270 contestants in the preliminary rounds. The contestants took part in four categories: memorizing the entire Holy Quran; memorizing 20 parts of the Holy Quran; memorizing 10 parts; and Holy Quran recitation and Tajweed.
In the final rounds, which started on Tuesday, 26 contestants qualified to the final phase. The judges will be assessing participants in morning and evening sessions at the Imam Sarakhsi Mosque in Bishkek.
The head of religious affairs in Kyrgyzstan, Mufti and head of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Kyrgyzstan Abdulaziz Zakirov, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah, and Guidance for Islamic Affairs Dr. Awad Al-Enezi, Saudi Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan Ibrahim Al-Radi, several members of parliament, and various official media outlets will attend the closing ceremony on Wednesday.
The first competition was organized in December 2023, at the national level, for boys. Such competitions are part of the programs conducted by the ministry abroad, with the aim of spreading the teachings of the Holy Quran and Sunnah and combatting extremism.
