As the 2023 Hajj rituals climaxed on Friday after the participating pilgrims including Nigerians moved back to Makkah after spent five days at the three holy sites of Muna, Arafah and Muzdalifah, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has unveiled a road map for next year’s hajj operations.
The country’s minister for Hajj and Umrah, Tawfiq Al-Rabiah, rolled the plans at a meeting with the leadership of the hajj missions to mark the end of this year’s Hajj exercise. He thanked all agencies and Hajj missions for their roles in the 2023 exercise.
While reaffirming the Kingdom’s commitment to continue serving the Pilgrims in the best manner, preparations for next year’s hajj will begin with issuance of letters to countries that announced commencement of preparations for the spiritual exercise and confirmation of its slots for 2024 Hajj.
The high point of the event that was attended by heads and representatives of the various missions and countries was the announcement of Iraq as the overall best Hajj Mission for the 2023 Hajj just as countries like Malaysia, Gambia, Bahrain, Singapore, South Africa and Azerbaijan were recognized for excellent performance in various aspects of the Hajj operations.
The 2024 Hajj preparatory meetings will hold from September 16 to November 4, 2023, while an international symposium and exhibition will be held on January 8, 2024.
He said accommodation and masha’er contracts would be concluded on or before February 25, just as visa issuance will commence on March 1 and close on April 29, 2024.
He said allocation of tents and space at the three religious sites – Muna, Arafat and Muzdalifah for Masha’er will be based on first come and first serve, and urged participating countries to prepare early enough for the pilgrimage in order to get their preferred locations at Masha’er.
The first set of pilgrims for the 2024 hajj exercise will arrive the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on May 9.
