The Executive Secretary in a handshake with a pilgrim at one of the tents in Mina
The airlifting of four thousand pilgrims of varied backgrounds and managing same for thirty five days in Saudi Arabia and returning them to Ghana, with four deaths recorded, has been described as a successful feat by the Ghana Hajj Board.
Giving the thumbs-up for Hajj 2024, the Executive Secretary of the Board, Alhaji Farouk Hamza added that fourteen persons who did not travel to Saudi Arabia through the Ghana Hajj Board died through the heat wave which struck Saudi Arabia during the recent Hajj.
Speaking as a guest of Citi FM’s Point Blank programme last week, the Executive Secretary told the host, Umaru Sanda, that “those who travelled to Saudi Arabia using tourist visas were exposed to the harsh weather as they sought shelter under bridges and other makeshift shelters.
He said that the Board would continue to educate Ghanaian Muslims against risking their lives and traveling to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia through unapproved channels. The Saudi authorities outlaws the use of tourist visas for the performance of the Hajj, he said.
“I think that it’s gone very well. We have successfully carried 4,000 pilgrims to Saudi Arabia and managed them for thirty five days in a foreign country. It is a complex endeavour. To have done this and returned them safe four persons can be described as a successful,” he said.
Explaining the pre-airlift process, he said it involves relying on Hajj agents who account for 80 or so percent of prospective pilgrims. Others, he said, pay directly to the Hajj Board, adding that upon receipt of payment for the Hajj, the process of documentation commences followed by visa acquisition and a preparation of flight schedules.
Historically, over the past many years, successive governments have subsided the Hajj fare, he said, adding however that “this year and the last government has not done so except for the foreign exchange differential cushion which has witnessed the maintenance of same fare of GH¢75,000 last year and this year, in spite of the cedi depreciation.”
Giving a breakdown of the Hajj fare, he pointed at the airline cost, twice a day feeding for the duration of the Hajj – thirty five days, transport cost in the face of recently introduced taxes by the Saudi authorities which he described as a novelty.
Ghana is one of many countries which participate in the annual religious rituals in Saudi Arabia, and so it is important to consider this fact alongside comparative cost in other countries, he said, adding that “Ghana’s fare is lower than many others.”
The previous low fares, according to him, were devoid of the additional services being provided by the Ghana Hajj Board today, pointing especially at the twice a day meals. “Under the previous administrations, this feature was non-existent,” he stated.
When comparisons are being made, such factors including the dollar appreciation against the cedi depreciation should be considered.
The Hajj, he said, is a product a Saudi government agreement and its Ghanaian counterpart. To embark upon the pilgrimage, he said, one has to pass through the Ghana Hajj Board.
By A.R. Gomda