The Uganda National Mosque (also known as Old Kampala Mosque or Gaddaffi National Mosque) is adorned with exquisite furniture. It is the biggest mosque in Uganda and the seat of the Uganda Muslim Supreme Council, the unifying body for all muslims in Uganda set by the Late Idi Amin Dada.
The Gaddafi Mosque sits on 12 acres of land. Its interior and exterior can accommodate up to 35,000 worshipers. It is one of the five biggest mosques in Africa. It is located at Old Kampala, one of the historical 7 hills of Kampala. Old Kampala is where the city started.
In the 1890s, Frederick Lugard, the chairperson of the Imperial British East Africa Company, built a fort on top of the hill. The mosque was given to Muslims of Uganda as a gift from the Libyan government, by then under the leadership of the late Col. Muammar Gaddafi. Inside there are soft carpet are made with exceptional craftsmanship and are so comfortable.
At the front of the is a well-crafted Mihrab, a semi-circular position that represents the quibla, the direction of Mecca, outside the pulpit, where the imam sits to read Koran messages to the worshipers. The Mihrab is crafted with expensive and durable wood fittings imported from Italy. On the right side of the Mihrab is where the Koran is kept in a glass structure representing the 114 chapters of the Koran on which the Islamic teaching is based. The Koran is in Arabic language therefore, it is read from right to left.
From the ceiling hangs huge chandeliers, branched ornamental light fixtures. The women’s side is slightly smaller compared to the men’s side reason being that women have an option of performing their prayers at home.
There is a distinctive tower structure, the minaret, which is best known as the place where the muezzin calls Muslims for prayers. Each mosque has one, but the minaret at the Gaddafi Mosque is more of a skyscraper. If you climb to the top, you are able to see Kampala at all angles. You are able to see the seven hills of Kampala at once. The roads leading to and from the city are clear from this view. Prominent buildings such as the Mapeera House, Crested Towers, the Aya Hotel, among others stand proud.
The Mosque hosts 50 to 80 tourists daily during the peak season.
The peak seasons are June, July and August. Every foreign tourist pays shs15,000 while nationals pay less to access the mosque and minaret.