The Governor of Bauchi State, Bala Mohammed, has agreed to cover half of the extra cost of the 2024 Hajj fare for the aspiring pilgrims from the state.
This means that the state government will provide a subsidy of ₦959,000 for each of the 1,652 aspiring pilgrims from the state, amounting to ₦2.5bn.
The state Commissioner for Religion Affairs and Community Orientation, Alhaji Yakubu Hamza, revealed this information on Friday during a briefing at the Government House, Bauchi.
The commissioner clarified that the beneficiaries include those who have already paid the increase, those who have yet to commit, and those who were granted a Hajj slot by the state government.
Additionally, the Executive Secretary of the Bauchi State Pilgrims Welfare Board, Imam Abdulrahman Idris, explained that aspiring pilgrims who have registered and paid the initial deposit of N4.7 million and N4.5 million with the State Pilgrims Board will now need to deposit ₦959,000 out of the N1.9 million increase.
The National Hajj Commission raised the fare for the 2024 pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia by N1,918,032.91.
The commission also set March 28, 2024, as the deadline for aspiring pilgrims to make their payments.
The increase in fares was attributed to the foreign exchange crisis in the country.
Initially, NAHCON had set the fare for this year’s pilgrimage at N4.9m, but the commission is now asking those who have paid the initial amount to add a balance of N1.9m, bringing the total to N6.8m.
