NAHCON, Saudi Arabia sign agreement on 2020 hajj

Nigeria retains 95, 000 slot allocation for pilgrims going to Saudi Arabia for the 2020 hajj. This forms part of the memorandum of understanding signed by the Minister of State Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Zubairu Dada and the Saudi Arabian Minister of Hajj and Umrah, Dr. Saleh Bn Taher Benten.

The memorandum was signed on December 5 preparatory to the 2020 hajj exercise. Prior to the signing of the memorandum, Amb. Dada conveyed President Muhammadu Buhari’s gratitude to King Salman Bin Abdul Aziz and the Saudi Arabian authorities for compensating families of five dead and six injured Nigerians affected in the 2015 crane crash accident in Makkah.

He expressed Mr. President’s gratitude for the hospitality and support being enjoyed by Nigerian pilgrims.

The minister further conveyed the president’s request to Saudi Arabia to assist NAHCON in every way possible and to support its regulatory role in terms of pilgrims’ airlift to Saudi Arabia.

Representative of NAHCON’s acting chairman and present NAHCON acting Commissioner Operations, Alhaji Abdullahi Saleh, delivered a message of gratitude to the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah on behalf of his chief executive officer.

The acting chairman had sent his appreciation for the brotherly cooperation his team had been enjoying from the Saudi authorities since his appointment and nomination of a new NAHCON board by the president.

Responding, the Saudi Minister of Hajj and Umrah, who led the Saudi delegation to the signing ceremony, noted that he had been deputy minister of hajj for 20 years before rising to become the substantive minister and has witnessed the tremendous progress that hajj affairs has attained in Nigeria.

Part of the agreement reached for the 2020 hajj include a strong reminder on the e-track registration guideline.

Saudi Vice Minister of Hajj and Umrah, Dr. Abdul Fatah Mishat during a technical discussion session preparatory to the signing of the memorandum, re-emphasised that the Saudi Ministry of Hajj will not recognise any contractual agreement or payment done outside the e-track portal.

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Such, he stated will be considered illegal and will not be recognised by the Kingdom.

Also, he added that pilgrims can pay an optional 100 Saudi Riyals or more as insurance cover for any accident, loss of property and other risks they may face while on hajj.

This does not however, include medical care as the Kingdom grants free health care to every pilgrim while in the holy land, he said.

On the clarification on visa fees, the delegation declared that the amount charged is 300 Riyals for all types of visas. However, the validity of the Umrah and visit (tourism) visas do not extend to hajj period, while the issuance of such visas ends shortly before the onset of hajj season.

Mr. Mishat commended NAHCON for its effort in controlling visa violations and pilgrims absconding in the Kingdom.