Minister of Islamic Affairs and Endowments Dr Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed has said the Maldives is currently witnessing a positive period in terms of Quranic activities and development, and that it must be maintained.
He made the remarks while speaking at the Awarding Ceremony of the 38th National Quran Competition.
In his address, the minister said the biggest change to the National Quran Competition is that all students who wish to participate can now take part. Previously, only around five students from each age group were selected from participating schools for each category. He noted that with the new change, participation has increased significantly, growing from around 800 participants to more than 3,000. While the competition previously resembled an inter-school competition, a national competition should be broader than simply being a school-based competition, he said.
The minister said well-executed Quran competitions are being conducted in the atolls. He also praised the arrangements for conducting Quran competitions in schools.
Minister Shaheem further noted that the government has increased the prizes to encourage greater interest and participation in the national competition.
The government aims to make the competition the most prestigious Quran competition in the Maldives, with the highest prize pool. While President Dr Mohamed Muizzu has decided to fund the competition directly through the national budget, winners in all three categories receive a special presidential scholarship.
During the ceremony held at the Islamic Centre, awards and certificates were presented to the first-place winners by President Dr Mohamed Muizzu The first-place winners of the three categories of the competition were Ismail Izu’aan, Aayan Ahmed Inan and Aishath Zeek Riyaz. Ismail Izu’aan received first place in the Hafiz category while Aayan Ahmed Inan won first prize from the recitation from text category. Meanwhile, Aishath Zeek Riyaz won first place in the memorised recitation category.
First prize winners received special prizes from the President including a cash prize of USD 6,485, and presidential scholarship to study at country of choice upto PhD level in any field. Other prizes included a cash prize of USD 4,865 from the Islamic Ministry, including the National Centre of Holy Quran, Maldives Zakat House and Islamic Development Fund, and an Umrah trip by the Maldives Hajj Corporation.
Hafiz category winners:
1st Place: Ismail Izu’aan Ibrahim
2nd place: Izkan Ajeeb Hussain
3rd place: Mohamed Ash’ham Ali
Recitation from text category:
1st Place: Aayan Ahmed Inan
2nd place: Zeek Ibrahim Luthufee
3rd place: Hussain Yamaan Azerbaijani
Recitation from memory category:
1st Place: Aishath Zeek Riyaz
2nd place: Uwais Bin Inaz
3rd place: Izyan Imad Abdulla
In this year’s competition, a total of 3,050 children participated in the audition round, of whom 2,742 recited during the auditions. A total of 379 students advanced to the semi-finals, while 140 students progressed to the final round. The National Centre for the Holy Quran said that 138 students recited in the finals.