The Ghanaian Minaret

Since becoming the vice president of Ghana, Dr. Alhaji Mahamudu Bawumia has embarked on philanthropic projects that seek to transform the lives of Ghanaian beneficiaries.

Among these projects are the building and renovation of Muslim worship centres, commonly known as Masajids (mosques).

These mosques not only serve as places of worship but also reflect the Vice President’s commitment to enhancing community infrastructure and fostering religious tolerance across the nation.

They have also enriched the nation’s architectural landscape while reinforcing the bonds of unity and spirituality among its people.

Here are some of the five major mosque projects that Dr. Bawumia has undertaken during his tenure as vice president.

Prang Mosque

On Friday, October 9, 2020, the Vice President commissioned the famous Prang Mosque of Abdullai Mai Kano, a famous Ghanaian Tijjaniyya scholar who died on September 12, 2005.

It was in fulfilment of a promise to honour the memory of one of the most influential clerics in Ghana.

This was the third major renovation the mosque has undergone since it’s establishment in 1924, and a rebuilding in 1964 which was warranted by the growing Muslim population in the area due to cattle trade.

The son of the cleric, Sheikh Khalifa Ahmed Abdulai Maikano, who happened to be the supreme leader and president of the Tijjaniyya Muslim Council of Ghana, vowed to vote for the New Patriotic Party in the upcoming December 2020 general election.

Yendi Central Mosque

On November 21, 2020, Dr. Bawumia commissioned the Yendi Central Mosque, located in the Yendi Municipal District of the Northern Region.

The mosque, also known as the Masjid-ul-Zaytunn, was 40% complete when the Vice President was called upon to take over the project.

Yendi Central Mosque is situated close to the marketplace, general market, and Yendi Community Centre.

Tamale central mosque

After three years of renovation, the Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, handed over a refurbished central mosque to the people of Tamale on January 6, 2023.

He undertook the renovation based on a request made in September 2020 by the regional Chief Imam, Sheikh Abdul Salam Ahmed, who appealed to the Vice President to help defray the cost of renovation works on the ground floor of the mosque.

Two months later, in November 2020, the Vice President, after a Friday Jummah prayer, announced his decision to defray the existing cost and carry out an extensive renovation of the entire mosque.

The renovation entailed paintings, lighting, the redesign of mosque minarets, and a pent house, among other things.

Prior to the Vice President undertaking the renovation project, a philanthropist named Alhaji Siidi was reported to have started the renovation work, which included replacing louvre frames and wooden doors with sliding doors and windows, tiling the interior, and changing electrical installations.

The two-story mosque, said to have been in existence for over a century, was rebuilt and commissioned on March 6, 1974.

Kumasi Central Mosque

The vice president held the sod-cutting ceremony for the reconstruction of the mosque on October 14, 2020, and the mosque was handed over to the people of Kumasi on March 3, 2023, at a well-attended ceremony.

The 7,000-capacity mosque has 11 furnished offices, including offices for the Imam and chiefs.

It also has a conference hall with an accommodation capacity of 500 people, 30 underground washrooms, a two-bedroom apartment, and an engine room.

The Muslim community had struggled to raise GHS 120,000 to settle 56-year-old lease arrears on the mosque land.

It took the intervention of the Vice President, Dr. Bawumia, to settle the arrears and pave the way for the reconstruction of the mosque.

Sorbelle Mosque

Dr. Bawumia funded and commissioned the mosque at Sorbelle in the Sissala West District of the Upper West Region on Saturday, June 29, 2024.

The project was in fulfilment of a pre 2016 election promise to help uplift the faith of the predominantly Muslim community.