The Ministry of Awqaf, Islamic Affairs, and Holy Places signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Monday with the Waste Recycling Cooperative Society to implement a project for sorting and recycling plastic bottles in mosques.
اضافة اعلان
The MoU was signed by the Ministry's Secretary-General, Ismail Al-Khatba, and the Society's Chairman, Hussein Abu Jabal.
Al-Khatba stated that the signing of this memorandum comes within the framework of establishing an institutional and community-based environmental culture. This stems from the major awareness-raising role played by the ministry through more than 5,000 mosques where Friday sermons are held, reaching hundreds of thousands of citizens weekly across various governorates of the Kingdom.
He emphasized that the plastic waste sorting and recycling project in mosques represents a pioneering initiative that will launch in approximately 100 mosques as a first phase. It will then expand gradually to include major mosques in the capital, followed by other governorates. He noted that maintaining cleanliness and recycling align closely with Islamic values, which consider cleanliness an inherent part of faith.
Al-Khatba expressed hope that this initiative would help establish sustainable environmental practices whose positive impacts extend to homes and society as a whole. He highlighted the ministry's voluntary and awareness programs, which are part of its executive plan for the Cleanliness and Anti-Littering Strategy 2026–2027.
For his part, Abu Jabal stressed that shifting community behavior and embedding the concept of environmental preservation have been the primary goals of the society since its establishment. He noted that cooperating with the Ministry of Awqaf is a significant step, given the influential awareness role that mosques fulfill.
He added that waste recycling carries vital environmental, economic, and social dimensions, explaining that this sector provides job opportunities for thousands of workers, helping support their families and improve their income sources.
The areas of cooperation include training and human capacity building, conducting specialized training workshops, and executing environmental awareness programs, in addition to collecting, sorting, and recycling waste generated in mosques—specifically plastic water bottles and cardboard.
The memorandum aims to establish a joint mechanism for cooperation in waste sorting and recycling, contributing to the achievement of desired environmental goals, and enhancing both parties' contributions to promoting a culture of sustainability while keeping pace with scientific and practical developments in the waste management sector.
