"I remind the Directorate General and all ranks that the requirements for Hajj that have been set by Saudi Arabia must be fulfilled; first, the vaccine requirement," he said while opening the 2022 Technical Guidance for Hajj Organizing Officers (PPIH) at the Pondok Gede Hajj Dormitory here on Tuesday.
According to the government of Saudi Arabia, pilgrims will need to get vaccinated against COVID-19 and show a negative PCR test result of a sample taken 72 hours before departure.
Head of the Hajj Health Center at the Ministry of Health, Budi Sylvana, informed that not all prospective Hajj pilgrims who are scheduled to depart this year have been fully vaccinated.
"According to our data, only 76 percent pilgrims have received the complete dose," he pointed out.
Those who have not been fully vaccinated might be at risk of not being able to leave for the pilgrimage, Sylvana added.
"It is our task to help them get vaccinated immediately," he said.
Aside from the vaccine requirement, the government of Saudi Arabia has also imposed an age limit on pilgrims: they cannot be older than 65 years.
"We have asked (prospective) pilgrims to be patient. Hopefully, next year, the requirements will be changed; for example, (there will be) no age limitation," he remarked.
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For the 2022 Hajj pilgrimage, Saudi Arabia has set the pilgrim quota for Indonesia at 100,051. The total figure includes 92,825 pilgrims under the regular Hajj quota, 7,226 pilgrims under the special Hajj quota, and 1,905 officers.
Earlier, the Directorate of Hajj and Umrah at the Ministry of Religious Affairs had released the names of regular pilgrims who are eligible to depart for the 2022 pilgrimage.
The names of eligible pilgrims can be accessed on www.haji.kemenag.go.id.
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Translator: Desi Purnamawati, Raka Adji
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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