Awqaf Dubai Plans Over AED 400 Million in Nine Malls to End State Mosque Funding by 2030

The plan moves a public cost onto rental income from donor-funded property. Al Mutawa said the foundation expects income from its endowment malls to exceed the mosques' operating costs by 2029. That would let rental returns cover all running expenses and remove the need for government funding a year later.

The model rests on one test case. The Al Khawaneej endowment mall cost between AED 40 million and AED 45 million and took 18 months to build. It has 25 shops, is fully let and earns AED 16 million a year. Al Mutawa said that income covers the operation and upkeep of about 250 mosques. A small shop beside a single mosque, the older model, typically earned no more than AED 100,000 a year, he said.

Ten plots in residential areas have been allocated to the programme. The nine new centres are under development: one in Al Athbah, four in Al Aweer, and others in Al Amardi, Nad Al Hamar, Hind City and Latifa City. The tender for the Al Athbah centre has gone to consultants and contractors and is expected to take 18 months to complete.

The foundation has also signed long-term investment contracts worth AED 200 million with real estate developers to build five new endowment properties, all of whose income will go to Dubai's mosques. The projects are being planned with the Mohammed Bin Rashid Housing Establishment, Dubai Municipality and Dubai Parks, with centres placed near public parks.

Al Mutawa said design choices at Al Khawaneej cut electricity use by 66% and water use by 15%. Funding for the new centres will come from donors, he said, so the pace of construction depends partly on how much the foundation can raise.