Jakarta, Jan. 29 -- Sixty contestants from 38 countries in Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and America have joined the 4th International Quran Recitation Competition, or Musabaqah Tilawatil Quran (MTQ), hosted by Indonesia this year.

"We have focused on organizing national MTQ events, but now, we are starting to hold similar events at the international level," Religious Affairs Minister Nasaruddin Umar said while opening the competition in Jakarta on Wednesday.

He highlighted that people around the world have shown great interest in participating in the contest, noting that contestants from as many as 187 countries took part in the online pre-qualification stage held in 2023.

Among the 60 participants who qualified for the semi-...