Why Parts Of Africa Face Shortage Of Muslim Wudu Facilities
HARARE, Zimbabwe — Across Africa, skyscrapers, modern highways and world-class airports are becoming symbols of development. Amid these advancements, the needs of millions of Muslims remain overlooked, particularly when it comes to prayer and ablution facilities.
Ablution, or wudu, is often performed before prayer and involves washing the hands, face, mouth, nostrils, arms and feet in a certain sequence with running water.
“I always travel across Africa with work. Many buildings and public spaces have no wudu facilities. This makes most Muslims uncomfortable,” said Muhammad Dawaka, a frequent traveler.
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Dawaka’s frustration is echoed by many. Practicing Muslims in many parts of the world, including the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and portions of Africa, pray five times a day. When away from home, Muslims must pray these daily prayers in public spaces such as offices, shopping centers, conference rooms, transit hubs, and educational institutions.
The need for these sanitary ablution services is not limited to areas of the world where the overwhelming population is Muslim, experts said.
Tobias Mureta, an expert on interfaith communities in Zimbabwe, said that in other parts of the world, it is necessary when a significant Muslim community frequents a facility, like a university, a conference center, an international airport or a train station.
“Unfortunately, Muslims are often observed utilizing ordinary restrooms to do ablution due to a lack of such sanitary facilities. Given that these restrooms are not designed for this function, this could cause pain for all sanitary service users. Both Muslims and those of other faiths,” Mureta said.
For Muslims, cleanliness is not only a matter of hygiene — but a central requirement of faith.
“Wudu facilities are not toilets as some may think. The facilities feature a foot-washing trough and have drainage and anti-slip surfaces to prevent accidents and contamination,” said Yusuf Mwembe, a Muslim from Lusaka, Zambia.
Without these provisions, Muslims are often forced to use regular restrooms, creating discomfort for both themselves and other users. In regions where prayer is observed five times a day, including workplaces, schools, airports, and hospitals, Mwembe said, the lack of proper Wudu facilities becomes a significant barrier to religious practice.
“For Muslims, ablution is a state that must be attained before prayer. To achieve this state, a person must use water to do certain acts in a specific sequence. This is known as the ablution process,” he said.
Mwembe said the process may be performed at any time, and the state of ablution can be maintained for the performance of one or more prayers.
The ablution protocol includes cleaning one’s palms, mouth, nose, face, each arm up to the elbow, wiping one’s hair with wet hands, massaging the ears with wet hands, and then washing the feet up to the ankle.
Despite the challenges, there are positive strides in other African countries. In South Africa, inclusivity is gradually expanding. At the iconic Kruger National Park, rest camps and picnic sites now include prayer and wudu facilities for Muslim guests. Major campsites at the park, such as Skukuza, Lower Sabie and Satara have been fitted with these spaces.
Elsewhere, private institutions like Aquila Safari Lodge in Cape Town also offer Muslim-friendly facilities, embracing religious diversity.
Airports across South Africa have made similar strides. O.R. Tambo International in Johannesburg, Cape Town International, and King Shaka in Durban are among several airports with dedicated prayer rooms and ablution facilities. Although small, these rooms serve as vital spaces for travelers seeking to pray or read the Qur’an.
On Fridays, imams from nearby communities are invited to lead congregational prayers at major airports such as O.R. Tambo and King Shaka. Hazendal Islamic Education, a Muslim community empowerment and advocacy association that works with Wudumate, said even in some farms in South Africa, Muslim workers now have a clean, respectful space for wudu.
Still, activists and Muslim leaders argue that these scattered developments are not enough. The gap between modern infrastructure and religious inclusivity remains wide across much of Africa.
According to WuduMate, designing a multi-faith space is more than just putting a few cushions in a quiet room. Whether you’re building for a university, workplace, airport, or hospital, there is a real art to honoring every belief system with sensitivity, functionality, and dignity.
Calvin Manika is an award-winning international journalist based in Zimbabwe.