The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has made a significant announcement regarding the upcoming Hajj pilgrimage in 2025. The commission has confirmed that the federal government will no longer provide subsidies for Hajj payments. This decision has raised concerns about the financial burden that will fall on Nigerian pilgrims.
In previous years, government subsidies primarily came in the form of a concessionary exchange rate. This allowed pilgrims to purchase U.S. dollars at a lower rate through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). However, in a recent statement, NAHCON spokesperson Fatima Sanda Usara explained that for the 2025 Hajj, “There will be no concessionary exchange rate from the government for Hajj fare payment for pilgrims whether under state or private Hajj operators.”
As a result of this change, the cost for each pilgrim is expected to rise significantly. Based on current exchange rates, where the naira stands at approximately N1,650 to one dollar, the fare for each intending pilgrim could reach nearly N10 million. This figure is based on the assumption that pilgrims will pay at least $6,000 for their Hajj journey. While NAHCON has yet to officially announce the exact fare for the 2025 pilgrimage, various State Pilgrims Welfare Boards have already started requesting initial deposits of N8.5 million from prospective pilgrims.
In addition to the fare announcement, NAHCON also disclosed that every Nigerian pilgrim who participated in the 2023 Hajj will receive a refund of 150 Saudi Riyals, amounting to approximately 64,682 pilgrims benefitting from this financial return.
The announcement was made during a virtual meeting on October 7, 2024, where NAHCON officials discussed recent developments with members of the Private Tour Operators (PTOs) in Nigeria.
“The meeting held today, 7th October 2024 was to update members on resolutions reached after resumption of office on Wednesday, 2nd October 2024 by Acting Chairman of the Commission, Prof Abdullahi Sale Pakistan who had been absent briefly on a trip.
“NAHCON’s Commissioner of Operations, Prince Anofi Olanrewaju Elegushi, chaired the virtual meeting with the PTO’s where he relayed new developments from both Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah (MoHU) and NAHCON’s decisions resulting from the second EXCO meeting with the new head of the Commission.”
In a further development, Elegushi noted that the number of licensed PTOs allowed to operate in Nigeria had been reduced from 20 to 10. Each company must now register a minimum of 2,000 pilgrims to qualify for Hajj visa approval.
He also addressed concerns regarding past refunds, explaining that while details for the 2022 refunds are still pending, specific PTOs from Field Office 18 will collectively receive SR62,602 (N26,993,224) due to inadequate meal provisions during the pilgrimage.
Elegushi added that NAHCON’s executive committee approved a new payment option for the 2025 Hajj. Operators who wish to pay the N40 million caution deposit through a bank guarantee can do so, even if they have already made a cash deposit.
Additionally, he clarified misconceptions about debts owed by NAHCON to PTOs. Contrary to claims that the commission owes N17 billion from the 2024 Hajj, he stated that only N2 billion was received, including N1 billion rolled over from the previous year. Of this amount, 30 companies had requested refunds totaling N750 million, which have already been processed.
“Similarly, the Commissioner Operations informed the PTO members that the NAHCON’s EXCO has approved the option of honouring bank guarantee as payment of N40 million caution deposit for the 2025 Hajj. In view of the above, any operator who wishes to make the payment through bank guarantee but has already made a cash deposit is invited to request for collection of the earlier deposit in order to present the bank guarantee.”
He also clarified that contrary to claims that NAHCON owes PTOs N17 billion from the 2024 Hajj caution deposit of N25million, it only received N2billion, N750million from 110 companies that registered for the 2024 Hajj.
“The amount included a roll-over of N1billion, 250million from the previous year. From the amount, 30 companies requested for refunds amounting to N750m, which has been paid. The balance still in the custody of the commission accruing to undecided PTOs is N750m.”
