Manchester’s Muslim community come together for New Year litter-pick

Equipped with bin bags, litter-picking sticks and high-vis jackets, 50 members of Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association (AMYA) Manchester have once again united early at Manchester City Centre on New Year’s day fulfilling their pledge to serve Great Britain by keeping it clean.

It is part of a nationwide campaign from the UK’s AMYA – The youth organisation of Britain’s largest organised Muslim Community.

In 2022, they raised over £500,000 pounds for various British charities, facilitated 1.6 million meals being given to the vulnerable, and donated over 10 tonnes of food to food banks across the UK.

As part of the nationwide ‘Mercy for Mankind’ campaign, named after the Holy Prophet Muhammad, AMYA organises various community projects every year starting with the New Year’s street clean up.

Other initiatives include tree planting, fundraising, blood donations, food drives and various other projects throughout the year.

Aqeel Mushtaq, the local youth leader of AMYA has said: “At a time when we need unity and togetherness, this is a great opportunity to bring people together from different walks of life to serve the country in which we live in as one team. Islam teaches us that ‘loyalty to your nation is part of
your faith’ and this is something which I and my fellow young Muslims strive to live by every single day.”

Commenting on the campaign, the National Director of AMYA Community Services, Muhammad Akbar, said:

“Littering costs the UK an estimated 660 million pounds a year. While the Government and Local Authorities are doing a great deal to address this issue,
we feel strongly that it is our religious and civic duty to also act.

“From a religious perspective, cleanliness and looking after our local communities are essential to the Islamic faith.
“With this in mind, our AMYA members across the UK kicked off 2023 with pre-dawn prayers followed by a nationwide street cleaning day. As well as AMYA members, we invited members from the local communities to join us and help us keep Britain tidy.”