The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) on Tuesday allocated slots to the states of Federation and others as preparation kicks off for Hajj 2024.
The allocation came to light at a meeting between the Chief Executives of State Pilgrims Welfare Boards, Agencies and Commissions and the Management of NAHCON presided over by the Chairman/CEO of the Commission, Alhaji Zikrullah Kunle Hassan.
A document prepared by the Commission showed that Nigeria retained the same 95, 000 slot allocation of 2023 for pilgrims again in the 2024 Hajj.
States on top of the chart are Kaduna with 6004 pilgrims, followed by Kano and Sokoto with 5,934 and 4,996 allocation respectively.
Kebbi 4,752; Katsina 4,513 and FCT 4,368, Kwara 3,419, Bauchi 3,364, Borno 2,691, Gombe 2,506, Niger 3,592, Jigawa 1,518, Nasarawa 2,010.
In the Southwest, Lagos got the lion share with 3,517 slots; Osun 1,764; Oyo 1,386; Ogun 1,191; Ondo 491 and Ekiti has the least allocation with 246 slots.
Similarly, Edo has 412; Cross-River 67; Imo 199; Delta 64; Bayelsa 58; Anambra 15 while Enugu got 14 slots. Abia and Akwa-Ibom have zero allocations.
Speaking at the meeting, Alhaji Hassan said Nigerians should should expect high fare for hajj in 2024, considering the fluctuating nature of foreign exchange. Alh. Hassan noted that while hajj fare would be determined by dollar exchange rate, the cost of air fare and services in Saudi Arabia will also play major roles in the overall cost of 2024 Hajj.
He revealed that Saudi authorities have announced that visa issuance to intending pilgrims will close 40 days before the date of Arafat, reminded hajj managers that the era of late entrance and concession to VIP is over.
” 2024 Hajj will be different entirely from what we used to have because of the new dimensions introduced by the Saudi authorities. For next year’s hajj, issuance of visa will be closed 40 to 50 days before Arafat. Unlike our tradition where we would issue visas to VIPs few days to Arafat, that practice is over.
”With the allocation of slots to states, preparation has commenced. Of course, we are still addressing some challenges faced during the last hajj in the area of limited space and shortage of food at Mina, we have written formal complaints demanding refund and apology. While awaiting that, we have forging ahead with 2024 exercise,” he said.
