The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria has announced plans to retrieve 5,000 Hajj slots earlier allocated to tour operators, following demands by state Muslim pilgrims’ welfare boards to utilise the quota.
The decision emerged from a meeting between NAHCON officials and licensed Hajj tour operators, where the commission disclosed that the affected slots would be reassigned to state governments. The move, however, drew strong objections from tour operators, who warned that withdrawing the slots would result in significant financial losses due to payments already made for airline tickets, hotel accommodation in Makkah and Madinah, and other logistics.
NAHCON chairman said the commission had written to the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah requesting an additional 5,000 slots to address the shortfall and mitigate the concerns raised by operators.
Tour operators also expressed difficulty with a proposed additional charge of $100 per pilgrim arising from changes in service providers at Mina, noting that pilgrims had already been informed of a fixed and complete Hajj package. In response, the chairman promised to explore the possibility of subsidising the extra cost, in line with recommendations from the commissioner for operations, adding that the NAHCON executive council would meet within the week to deliberate on the matter.
The meeting further revealed that only one out of the three service providers had so far indicated readiness to comply fully with the service agreement signed with Rawaf Mina for operations at Mina and Arafat during the 2026 Hajj.
In a related development, the commissioner for operations has submitted a memo to the NAHCON chairman seeking approval for affected companies to make additional payments into designated IBAN accounts, following their failure to complete full payments before the deadline.
Meanwhile, the Association of Hajj and Umrah Operators of Nigeria has been tasked to engage the commissioner for operations to follow up on the resolutions reached at the meeting.
