The Koranic Schools

I have previously reported the progress, or lack of it on the new mosque on the road to the bridge. Work stalled and the roof tiles which were nearly finished fell off and had to be replaced. My informant tells me that the problem was corruption in the Ministry of Religion and someone making off with the funds, but that informant believes all Ministers and their  gofers are corrupt. Anyway work was resumed and the project is nearly finished. I expect it will be in use when we return in the autumn. 

It is not just a mosque but a residential school complex devoted to Koranic Studies. Since the post arab spring election of a government with a mildly Islamic agenda (I don't use Islamist as that word has been hi-jacked by the western press to suggest connections to terrorism and something bad) there seems to be an increased investment in such schemes as the rebuilding of the Tamagroute zaouia illustrates. This development is very attractive and there are palm trees being planted outside so it's quite something.

Nevertheless nobody can quite understand why there is the equally attractive development about a km away opposite the taxi rank.

 This is also a new mosque (although it does not appear to have a mineret) and residential Koranic School. We don't understand why two institutions are necessary and, if capacity is the difficulty, why they didn't just make one bigger. My friends, whilst actively practising muslims, do not circulate in the higher echalons of the the faithful so perhaps there is to be some difference of interpretation in the teaching, or perhaps there are two schools to segregate the student population by sex. No-one has yet been able to tell me.