Doha - The Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs has invited entries for an international contest to design mosques.
The contest is open for engineering firms and offices in Qatar and other countries. The designs should integrate features of the traditional Qatari architecture with the Islamic architecture and fulfill the requirements of the Ministry.
The needs of the worshippers should also be kept in mind, according to Hadal Abdullah Al Dosari, head of the mosque evaluation section at the Ministry. Besides the prayer halls, the designs should also include other facilities attached to a mosque.
Sixteen winning entries will be awarded cash prizes worth a total of $236,000. Eight prizes are for designs of big mosques used for Friday congregations (Masjid Jamia) while the other eight prizes are for small mosques.
Besides the winning designs, other participating entries will get a cash prize of $5,000 each provided they are selected by the Ministry for future use. The deadline for submitting entries is September 30. Entries may be sent to Hadal Abdullah Al Dosari.
© The Peninsula 2007
