The drive to raise Shs 4 billion to buy 130 acres of land for a new Muslim cemetery has so far realised more than Shs 1.7 billion in the last five months, the spokesman of Uganda Muslim Welfare Association (UMUWA), Imam Idhi Kasozi has revealed.
UMUWA is a local Muslim charity organization that established the Salaam Muslim Cemetery at Nkoowe in Wakiso district. Since 2005, more than 20,000 Muslims have been buried at the 8-acre Nkoowe cemetery which however got filled up last September. As of now, the remaining space at Nkoowe can accommodate only minors.
Addressing journalists on Wednesday, April 24, during a media launch of the fundraising drive, Imam Kasozi said that since December 2023, various individuals and institutions have contributed nearly half of the total budget for the new cemetery.
“The initiative started in December last year and so far, we have collected Shs 1.7 billion from different institutions and Muslim communities including the Speaker of Parliament Anita Among who donated Shs 50 million,” he said.
“Our target was to have the funds within six months starting from December 2023 but we have so far covered four months and we still have a long way to go,” he added.
UMUWA has identified 130 acres of land along Mityana Road for the new cemetery. “We need to have Nkoowe II like yesterday because Muslims are struggling to get where to bury their dead and others incur more costs to [transport bodies of their loved ones] back to their ancestral homes,” Kasozi said.
Kampala Minister, Hajati Minsa Kabanda drive urged all Muslim leaders to embrace the cause as it benefits the entire Muslim community.
