Dubai: The Endowments and Minors’ Affairs Trust Foundation in Dubai (AWQAF) on Wednesday announced that an eco-friendly endowment mall to finance mosque affairs was progressing well, with the project at 17% completion.
The initiative is part of the ‘Mosques Endowment’ campaign, which supports the Dubai Mosques Endowments Fund in establishing a charitable endowment that commits its proceeds to meet the needs of mosques.
Spanning a total area of 165,000 square feet in the Al Khawaneej area, the mall will feature 29 shops, a large shopping centre, a medical centre, restaurants, and a fitness centre. It will also include service facilities, roads, garden areas, parking lots, and two prayer rooms for men and women. The estimated cost of construction of the mall is put at Dh40 million while its expected annual revenues of Dh8 million will be used to cover the expenses of about 50 mosques in Dubai that do not have access to endowments.
Eco-friendly mall
The mall is being built in accordance with international standards for green buildings, using eco-friendly materials and construction techniques, as well as the latest technologies to generate, save, and recycle energy tapping advanced solutions including solar and renewable energy sources. These efforts are aimed at improving the quality of the environment within the mall and reducing negative impacts on the ecosystem.
Ali Mohammed Al Mutawa, Secretary General of AWQAF DUBAI, was briefed on the progress of work at the project site. He was accompanied by Khalid Al Thani, Deputy Secretary General, several division managers from Awqaf Dubai, and the engineers overseeing the project.
Charitable activities
Al Mutawa stressed that establishing the mall in Al Khawaneej aligns with Dubai’s plans to expand and enrich endowments and enhance the involvement of individuals and institutions to be active partners in charitable activities. He added that construction work at the site is on course for timely completion. He pointed out that the project, having adopted green building standards, enhances Awqaf’s strategy of creating an endowment sector that follows the best solutions and practices of excellence and institutional innovation.
Al Mutawa called on all government and private entities, institutions, and individuals to contribute to the campaign of building the sustainable endowment, which represents an innovative model for the Foundation’s projects in supporting mosques in the UAE. This model, he added, lends new civilizational, cultural, and social dimensions to the endowment work and consolidates its role in raising the quality of life for individuals and society.
