The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria said the ongoing airlift of Nigerian pilgrims back to the country has been recording success due to First-in-First-Out arrangement.
NAHCON Assistant Director, Public Affairs, Fatima Sanda Usara, disclosed this in a press statement issued on Wednesday.
She issued the statement on behalf of the Chairman and Chief Executive, Mallam Jalal Ahmad Arabi.
Usara established that a comparative analysis between inbound airlift into Saudi Arabia and outbound flights back to Nigeria after 10 days shows noticeable progress.
According to her, during the first leg of the 2024 Hajj airlift, 17,639 pilgrims (34.7%) was the total number of pilgrims flown into the Kingdom after 10 days, thereby indicating an improvement with 18,326 pilgrims (36%) back into Nigeria within 10 days of the return journey home.
She added that according to records by NAHCON’s Command and Control Team, 21,085 pilgrims are safely back in Nigeria as at the time of filing this report, with an average of four flights daily, adding that in the coming days, the slots are expected to increase considering reduced pressure on the King Abdul Aziz International Airport Jeddah
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Usara pointed out that as of the evening of July 2, 2023, significant progress has been made with pilgrims from Nasarawa, Kogi, Oyo, Edo, Plateau States and Armed Forces having all safely returned to Nigeria.
She confirmed that Bauchi State still has 41 pilgrims left to conclude its airlift, Yobe State has 34, Lagos State 144 and Kebbi State has 236 to conclude.
Similarly, she announced that States such as: Kaduna, Kano, Borno, Kwara, Ogun pilgrims are also returning in accordance with the FIFO formula.
Zamfara, Katsina, Adamawa, Taraba, Sokoto, Gombe and the South South states Usara confirmed are scheduled for airlift soon.
Usara disclosed that data from the Commission’s Command and Control showed that Max Air has so far airlifted 8,759 pilgrims to Nigeria out of 23,784 pilgrims assigned to it.
FlyNas has conveyed 8,186 of its 19,785 pilgrims, while Air Peace has returned 3,303 pilgrims to Nigeria out of 7,296 pilgrims allocated to it.
The return journey is expected to end by July 19, 2024.
In the meantime, NAHCON has confirmed that Nigerian pilgrims are returning in good health, with no recorded cases of COVID-19 either in the Kingdom or upon arrival in Nigeria.
Prior to the trip, the pilgrims were vaccinated against COVID-19 in accordance with World Health Organization standards during the pandemic days. Usara added that they also received vaccination before the airlift to the Kingdom against other diseases.
“Therefore, it may be safe to describe Nigerian pilgrims as having attained herd immunity against COVID-19. Moreover, the Saudi Ministry of Health has been very stringent on all infectious diseases; such that all pilgrims are automatically screened for COVID-19 and Malaria before admission into Saudi hospitals,” said the statement.
It reads in part: “Statistics shows that more than 95% of Nigeria’s pilgrims who lost their lives in Saudi hospitals died from effects of Heat Stroke, Trauma/RTA, fall from height, and majority of other acute exacerbation of multiple comorbidities mainly Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs).
“NAHCON is working closely with the Federal Ministry of Health in ensuring health security of Nigerian citizens. This assurance was necessitated by unconfirmed concerns following media reports over a COVID-19 claim by certain countries. Besides, NAHCON has confidence in Saudi Arabia’s rigorous health precautions and on Nigeria’s Port Health authorities’ measures.
“Interestingly, the Commission, in collaboration with Ithra al Khair service providers, had distributed face masks and personal hygiene kits to Nigerian pilgrims in Muna as part of their welfare package due to the normally high prevalence of respiratory diseases during the Muna outing. NAHCON therefore advises pilgrims and their families to remain calm and disregard misinformation.”
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