Ref: PR/2011/38
The Significance of The Holy Qur’an in Islam.
Allah (s.w.t.) says in the Holy Qur’an, This is a Book full of Blessings that we have revealed unto you so people ponder upon its verses and men of intellect may reflect. (Quran 38:29)
“The best among you is the one who learns Qur’an and then teaches it to others” – Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.w.)
“The Quranic verses are treasures of knowledge. Whenever a treasure is opened, you have to see what lies in it”. – Imam Ali bin Hussayn (a.s.)
The Qur’an Competition is an annual event of the Africa Federation under AFTAB, each year it is held in different Jamaats in Africa. This time, the two day’s event was held in Dar Es Salaam on 24th and 25th September 2011. It was hosted by Dar Es Salaam Jamaat and sponsored by AFED.
The response from several Jamaats was overwhelming and it was pleasing to observe remarkable improvements in all aspects, from the participants to the organizers. We must commend the Parents, Jamaats, Madrassahs and the Ma’alims (Teachers) for their commitment and devotion in teaching and inculcating interest of reading, understanding the meaning and acquiring knowledge from Qur’an to the children.
Following Jamaats participated and the number of participants:
Boys | Girls | |
Arusha | 9 | 12 |
Bujumbura | 0 | 1 |
Dar-es-Salaam | 12 | 15 |
Mombasa | 13 | 10 |
Moshi | 5 | 2 |
Mwanza | 9 | 11 |
Nairobi | 3 | 6 |
Tanga | 1 | 0 |
Total | 52 | 57 |
AFTAB innovative as always, made the Competition more attractive and interactive, involving participants of all ages. There were 4 Groups, as follows:
Group A: 10 – 12 Years
Group B: 13 – 15 Years
Group C: 16 – 18 Years
Group D: 18 Years and above
The first three winners from each group were:
Gents | Ladies | |
Dar-es-Salaam | 8 | 11 |
Mombasa | 9 | 6 |
Mwanza | 6 | 4 |
Arusha | 0 | 3 |
Nairobi | 1 | 0 |
The Grand Closing Ceremony was held in the Gents Imambargha on Sunday after Maghribain prayers and was well attended by gents and ladies, including Representatives from the participating Jamaats, Participants of the Competition, Parents, Religious Scholars, Dignitaries, Judges, AFED and DSM Jamaat officials. It was a wonderful occasion, especially for the participating children, their Parents and Ma’alims.
Sheikh Murtadha Alidina, the Resident Aalim spoke on the importance of pondering, understanding, reflecting and following the teachings of Qur’an, it was an inspiring speech by Sheikh Alidina.
Alhaj Anwarali Dharamsi, Chairman of Africa Federation spoke on enticing the children and inculcating the culture of teaching them Qur’an with a meaning from a young age so that it becomes part of life for all our children when they grow and be a reflection in their daily lives.
Alhaj Anwarali called upon the Jamaats to conduct at least one Qur’an Competition within the Jamaat each year, preferably during the holy month of Ramadhan.
To encourage the children, Alhaj Anwarali presented cash gift of T. Shs. 12 Million. It was towards Ithale-Thawab of the Marhumeens of Dharamsi family and the Marhumeens of their in-laws.
Total 16 Groups of male/female. In each Group there were 3 winners, 1st, 2nd and 3rd.
Each winner received the following Cash Gift, Certificate and a Trophy:
1st Winner – Shs. 300,000/-
2nd Winner – Shs. 200,000/-
3rd Winner – Shs. 100,000/-
All the remaining participants received Shs. 40,000/- each, Certificate and a Plaque.
Alhaj Shiraz Walji, President of Dar es Salaam Jamaat emphasized on the understanding the Holy Qur’an. He said the Holy Qur’an is the eternal miracle of Islam. It is the complete and best guide for living one’s life and seeking Allah’s pleasure. In shor t, the Holy Qur’an provides all the guidance that humanity needs.
Seyed Hassan Naqvi, Chairman of AFTAB reiterated the crucial role of Madrassahs and Teachers in our Jamaats; he called upon the parents to support the Jamaat’s Madrassahs, Ma’alims and Volunteer Teachers, saying that they play an important role in the lives of our children. He stated, The Qur’an Competition will be held annually and he challenged the smaller Jamaats to create awareness and participate in these events in future.
A vote of thanks was delivered on behalf of all the participating Jamaats by Alhaj Muslim Sheriff of Arusha Jamaat.
Full report of the 7th AFTAB Qur’an Competition and photographs will be posted on our Website shortly.
The AFTAB Board wishes to record its sincere appreciation to the Organizing Committee of the Competition headed by Mrs. Raziabai Janmohamed for successfully planning and running this event.
Africa Federation wishes to express its sincere appreciation to the KSI Jamaat of Dar Es Salaam for kindly accepting to host the Competition. Our profound thanks to Br. Rizwan Shivji and his team for handling all the logistics and ground work required, the IUVC – Volunteers and the Caterer, Br. Mohamedhussein Kermalli, popularly known as Babu Lelu.
AFTAB also wishes to thank all the sponsorers and donors for their kind contributions in cash or in kind towards this noble cause.
Special thanks to the Master of Ceremony – Br. Imran Dhalla for the job well done.
We convey our special thanks to the Judges, Jamaats, Madrassahs, Ma’alims, Parents and all the Participants of the 7th AFTAB Qur’an Competition for their efforts and for making this event a great success. It is our hope that more Jamaats will participate in similar events in the future.
We convey our heartiest congratulations to all the participants.
Secretariat