Waikato Muslim Association

Our vision and mission is to help connect people to faith. Our Charities Commission Registration number is CC47075. In December of 1983, the WMA purchased the current 921 Heaphy Tce site which was a three-bedroom villa on nearly half an acre. Some modifications were made to convert it into a Mosque and it remained in the same shape until the late 90s. The presence of the Islamic Centre not only al

lowed for regular daily and congregational prayers but also regular Quran lessons for youth and community activities. With a steady flow of migrants in Waikato, especially from Fiji and Somalia, the Muslim population grew considerably by the late 90s and the building became small especially for congregational prayers. In 1996 the Association launched a fundraising drive to build a proper Mosque on the Heaphy Tce site. The cost was estimated to be around $500,000, which was raised through local and national efforts Alhamdulillah. The work started on building the new Mosque in May 1997 and finished later that year. The new Mosque opened its doors to worshippers in February 1998. In 2012, the neighboring property at 917 Heaphy Tce was acquired in order to extend the Mosque. Funds were raised primarily from within the community to purchase the property. The construction work started in early 2013 and finished later that year. In March 2014 the first floor of the newly built two-story building started operating as an Islamic education centre (known as WISE), and two months later Hamilton’s first Islamic integrated Early Childhood Education centre Iqra Educare opened its doors. The construction of the new building was made possible through local fundraising assisted by a grant from the Islamic Development Bank. Currently, there are around 100 young Muslims and Muslimahs enrolled in the WISE centre and learning about Islam and Quran Alhamdulillah. The ECE centre, Iqra, which is licensed for 30 pupils by the Ministry of Education is now fully subscribed.