The annual Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Competition for the Memorization of the Holy Qur’an and the Sunnah for ASEAN and Asia Pacific countries will be held in Jakarta on April 17-21.

The competition is organized by the Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud Foundation (SAASF) and the Ministry of Religious Affairs in collaboration with the Saudi Embassy in Indonesia.

Around 140 contestants who memorize the whole or part of the Holy Qur’an, and sayings of Prophet Muhammed, peace be upon him, are expected to participate in the competition.

These countries from where the participants will come from include Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei, Singapore, Myanmar, Vietnam, Laos, Australia, New Zealand, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Russia, South Korea and Thailand.

Contestants will compete in five categories of the competition, four of which are on memorizing and reciting the Holy Qur’an, either wholly or partially, and the fifth is memorizing and reciting Sunnah.

SAASF Secretary-General Prince Faisal bin Sultan said here on Sunday that the competition is an example of the late Crown Prince Sultan’s charitable deeds to serve Muslims all over the world.

“Our beloved great father was very keen to serve the Holy Qur’an and Sunnah (the sayings of Prophet Muhammed) not only in our country but everywhere during his life and after,” he said.

“Also, he was very willing to continue this work, especially after it was widely welcomed by Muslims in all countries … So we are continuing this good deed even after he passed away, especially because it acts as a bridge of communication between Muslim communities in these countries,” he added.

Prince Faisal expressed deep gratitude to Indonesian President Joko Widodo for his support in hosting the competition in his country and to the Saudi and Indonesian Islamic affairs ministers and the Saudi ambassador in Jakarta.

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