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Rabat – The first group of Moroccan pilgrims who have benefited from the “Makkah Route Initiative” arrived yesterday at the King Abdulaziz International Airport (KAIA) in the Saudi city of Jeddah, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) announced earlier today.
Earlier this month, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Interior announced the initiative’s launch in Morocco, Pakistan, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Bangladesh, saying that the aim was to assist pilgrims and facilitate their Hajj procedures.
The Moroccan pilgrims were welcomed at the airport by Morocco’s Consul General to Jeddah Ibrahim Ajouli, the Director of passports at KAIA Colonel Suleiman Mohammed Al-Yusuf, and representatives of the executive agencies of the Makkah Route Initiative.
First launched in 2019, the initiative issues e-visas for pilgrims and helps them complete travel procedures at the airport of the country of departure with respect to health requirements.
The assistance also includes codifying and sorting pilgrims’ luggage at airports in their home countries, as well as immediately transporting pilgrims from the airport to their places of residency in Mecca and Madinah. Service agencies deliver the pilgrims’ luggage to their places of residency in Saudi Arabia upon arrival.
Read also: 2022 Hajj: Morocco Reacts to Price Increases, Age Restriction
The Makkah Route Initiative is part of Saudi Arabia’s Guests of God Service Program, which King Salmane inaugurated in 2019 as part of the country’s “Vision 2030.” The “Vision 2030” is a strategy aiming to diversify Saudi Arabia’s economy and develop public service sectors such as health, education, infrastructure, and tourism.
The first batch of Moroccan pilgrims departed from Rabat-Sale airport on June 20. King Mohammed VI has addressed a letter to Moroccan pilgrims as they departed from Morocco, urging them to positively represent their country’s values of respect, tolerance, and peace.
Hajj 2022 will start in July, with Saudi Arabia permitting one million pilgrims, both from the country and outside, to perform this year’s pilgrimage to Mecca. The gulf country has also excluded pilgrims above the age of 65 from participating in Hajj.
