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Jeddah (dpa) - The Saudi Ministry for Islamic Affairs and Endowment is studying a plan to hire full-time female preachers in government posts, pan-Arab daily newspaper al-Sharq al-Awsat reported on Saturday.
Minister of Islamic affairs and preaching Saleh al-Sheikh was quoted in the newspaper as saying that female preaching is as important as male preaching, prompting the ministry to coordinate efforts for a couple of years to examine the possibility of hiring women as official preachers.
However, he said that the study has not yet concluded.
"We are currently seeking to organize female preaching efforts more through the help of NGOs and centers, and less through mosques," al-Sheikh said.
The plan proposed by the Saudi ministry to increase engagement of women in preaching comes after Morocco had recently announced that around 50 female preachers trained by the state will start work in mosques, factories and prisons.
Copyright 2006 dpa Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH
