By Soliu Oyesiji
Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Health, Fahd Al-Jalajel, has unveiled extensive healthcare preparations for the 2026 Hajj operations, highlighting major deployments of personnel, ambulances and modern technology to ensure pilgrims’ safety during the exercise.
According to the minister, the Kingdom has positioned over 3,000 ambulances, 11 air ambulances and more than 20,000 hospital beds across the holy sites for the Hajj season.
He added that no fewer than 52,000 healthcare practitioners, including 7,700 paramedics, as well as 25 emergency care centres, had been mobilised to provide medical support for pilgrims.
Al-Jalajel also disclosed that Saudi authorities would deploy smartwatches to remotely monitor pilgrims’ health conditions, while drones would be used to transport medicines and medical samples within the holy sites.
The minister further revealed that robot-assisted technologies would be utilised in handling complex surgeries during the Hajj period as part of efforts to improve healthcare delivery for millions of pilgrims expected in the Kingdom.
