Ethiopia, 24 September 2025 – The President of the Somali Regional State, Mustafe Mohamed Omar on Monday inaugurated the Raaso Islamic University, marking a major milestone in the region's education sector.
The project’s first phase, consisting of 10 blocks, which cost more than 400 million Birr, approximately 7.2 million USD, has already been completed.
The total cost of the entire project, including all its phases, is estimated to exceed 36 billion dollars.
The new university will offer Islamic studies, up to the second-degree level, making it the first in Ethiopia to provide such services.
A unique aspect of this university’s construction is that much of the labour cost was covered by the local community, who contributed their time and resources to the project, with many local residents physically working on the construction site.
For many years, the people of Raaso had hoped for a university dedicated to Islamic studies. That dream has now partly been realized through cooperation that spanned generations—from the youth to the elders and even mothers in the community.
The completion of this university sends a powerful message of encouragement, showing that when a community comes together, it can accomplish great things.
