Most likely, Dushanbe’s Central Cathedral Mosque will officially open in the second quarter (April-June) of this year, Sulaimon Davlatzoda, the head of the Committee on Religious Affairs under the Government of Tajikistan (CRA) told reporters in Dushanbe on February 3.
According to him, an official visit of Qatar’s state delegation to Tajikistan is planned for this period. “The mosque will officially open with participation of the Qatari delegation,” Davlatzoda noted.
It is the bilateral international project of Tajikistan and Qatar and according to international practice, the official opening ceremony will take place with the participation of both parties.
The mosque is completely ready to open but the official opening ceremony has been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Recall, Dushanbe’s Central Cathedral Mosque, which will be Central Asia’s largest mosque, was expected to officially open in August 2020.
This US$100 million project has been implemented under direct control of Tajik President Emomali Rahmon. The Persian Gulf State of Qatar has reportedly put up 70 percent of the cost of the project, with Tajikistan raising the rest.
President Emomali Rahmon began construction of Central Asia’s largest mosque not far from downtown Dushanbe in October 2011, a month after officially raising the country’s flag on a 165-meter flagpole in Dushanbe.
Tajik leader demonstrated a hidden skill when he took control of an excavator to start digging the foundation for the building.
Dushanbe’s Central Cathedral Mosque is located in the area of 12 hectares and in addition to the prayer halls the Mosque also features library, museum and social halls.
The mosque will be able to accommodate up to 120,000 worshipers
Critics are saying the mosque is an extravagance and that the money would be better spent on poverty reduction.
It was supposed that Dushanbe’s Central Cathedral Mosque will be Central Asia’s largest mosque. Meanwhile, Kazakhstan constructed and officially opened the Central Asian largest mosque in Astana on August 12, 2022. Kazakhstan’s first president Nursultan Nazarbayev attended the opening of the mosque, which was timed to coincide with 24th anniversary of the city’ foundation.
The Astana mosque spans an area of almost ten hectares, and is topped by a 90-meter central dome and eight smaller domes. The mosque surrounded by four minarets with 130 meters in height each.
The white structure took three years to build and is reportedly large enough to accommodate up to 235,000 worshipers.
