New Zealand Muslim Association


New Zealand Muslim Association established in 1950 is the oldest Islamic institution in New Zealand.

History

In 1959 it purchased a house in Ponsonby, central Auckland, and converted it into the first Islamic Centre in the country. In 1960 the NZMA invited Maulana Said Musa Patel from the Gujarat to become New Zealand's first Imam. In 1967 this house was sold and another bought; in 1972 this too was sold and another acquired at 17 Vermont Street, Ponsonby. In 1979 the house on this site was removed and construction work began to build New Zealand's first real mosque. Also in 1979 the NZMA was a founding constituent member of the Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand, the national Muslim organisation.
Former presidents of the NZMA include Kosovo-born Mazhar Krasniqi and Nazmi Mehmeti from the Republic of Macedonia. The longest serving Executive Committee member between 1956 and 1981 was Hajji Avdo Musovich, originally from Montenegro.
The current president of the Association is Imtiaz Ali and the current Secretary is Feroze Ali.