Villa College Rector Dr. Ahmed Anwar has stated around 80 qaris are required for Maldives.
Speaking to Miadhu Dr. Anwar stated that it was saddening that given our history of islam and the simple fact that Maldives has been a muslim nation, that the nation has a small pool of qaris. He noted that this was extremely apparent in the month of Ramadan when we fly in qaris from neighboring nations for the month.
He said that the shortage was acute, especially in Male’ and stated that this issue was widely felt in the islands as well.
Dr. Anwar said that qaris were created with hard work and dedication. He said that the lack of Maldivian quran teachers and hafez was extremely concerning. Dr. Anwar added that based on the 300 mosques and over 200 schools in the country, around 800 qaris are required. He also added that the number of qaris were low in the country as the previous government’s educational policies had been negligent in the effort.
He noted that the present educational curriculum allowed for a solution to the issue. He cited that the program started by former Islamic Minister to train 500 hafez should be carried out on a wider platform, engaging all schools not just Arabiyya school.
Dr. Anwar noted that the Presidential recognitions for national certificate recipients who byheart the quran was a boost to the field.
Around 800 qaris are needed for Maldives: Dr. Anwar
