Muslims urged to fight poverty through hard work

By Zaida Ramadhan

The Imam of Nakasero Mosque, Sheikh Swaleh Kiggundu Muna Bugerere, has urged fellow imams to encourage Muslims to embrace hard work as a way of fighting poverty and strengthening the Muslim community.

Delivering the Friday sermon at Namavundu Mosque in Gayaza on July 31, Muna Bugerere said imams should use Friday and other congregational prayers to inspire Muslims to work diligently and grow their businesses.

He said Muslims engaged in different trades, including boda boda transport, baking, poultry farming and beekeeping, should be encouraged to work hard and improve their livelihoods.

Muna Bugerere also called on imams to champion skills development initiatives that equip unemployed youth and adults with practical income-generating skills.

He noted that economic empowerment is essential for the growth of the Muslim community, saying a Muslim with a stable income is better placed to support the development of Islam through initiatives such as mosque construction and the payment of Zakat, one of the five pillars of Islam.

“A good Muslim is one who understands and practises his religion while also contributing to the development of Islam and the country through lawful earnings,” he said.

His remarks came as the Muslim community in Namavundu launched a campaign to raise more than Shs200 million to purchase land for the construction of a new mosque.

The current mosque, built by the community in 2007 on land donated by a Muslim benefactor, can no longer accommodate the more than 1,000 Muslims living in the area. The limited space has also left no room for expansion, forcing worshippers to share parking and sanitation facilities with the neighbouring household that donated the land.