The $75 billion global campaign to export a specific brand of faith
In short: In the 1980s, Saudi Arabia launched what some call the largest worldwide propaganda campaign ever mounted. Funded by petroleum exports, this initiative aimed to replace diverse local traditions with a unified Salafi-Wahhabi creed, building thousands of schools and mosques across every continent.
The international propagation of Salafism and Wahhabism gained massive momentum following the 1973 oil embargo. This conflict shifted the global balance of power, as soaring oil prices granted Saudi Arabia unprecedented wealth and prestige. For the House of Saud, this prosperity was viewed as a divine blessing that required 'pious behavior' to legitimize their dynasty. Consequently, they sought to replace secular nationalist movements in the Muslim world with a unified Islamic identity centered on their own conservative interpretation.
Between 1982 and 2005, the Saudi government spent over $75 billion to establish a global network of religious infrastructure. This included 200 Islamic colleges, 210 centers, 1,500 mosques, and 2,000 schools for children. These institutions were designed to propagate 'da'wah Salafiyya,' a brand of Islam that often stood in opposition to local Sufi traditions and mystical practices which had historically served as the primary social bonds for rural populations.
This expansion was not merely religious but geopolitical. During the Cold War, Western powers like the U.S. and UK covertly supported Islamist movements as a hedge against Soviet influence. Saudi Arabia utilized its resources to fund these groups, creating a 'hybrid' of Salafism and political Islamism. Critics argue this funding fueled intolerance and provided the ideological framework for modern extremism, while others note that many guiding figures in these transnational organizations were actually non-Arab foreign activists.
The movement faced significant resistance from traditional Islamic jurists who viewed Saudi puritanism with suspicion. However, as postcolonial governments took over private religious endowments (awqaf) and turned scholars into salaried employees, the influence of local traditions waned. This allowed the Saudi-backed model to gain a foothold in regions where it previously represented less than 1% of the Muslim population.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: International propagation of the Salafi movement and Wahhabism
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