Jakarta (ANTARA) - At least 17 thousand prospective Hajj pilgrims are likely facing problems registering for the pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia, Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Muhadjir Effendy has reported.

"Possibly, there is a registration problem with around 17 thousand prospective Hajj pilgrims. We will resolve that," he said here on Thursday.

Effendy pointed out that one of the problems faced by the prospective pilgrims is related to COVID-19 vaccination, which is one of the requirements set by the government of Saudi Arabia.

According to the Ministry of Health, only about 76 percent of the pilgrims who are scheduled to depart this year have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

He highlighted that a complete dose of COVID-19 vaccination is one of the main requirements for Hajj pilgrims. For this reason, those who have not received the complete dose may not be able to undertake the pilgrimage.

To this end, the Coordinating Ministry for Human Development and Culture, together with the Ministry of Health, will monitor prospective Hajj pilgrims one by one in a bid to ensure that they have received the complete dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Earlier, Saudi Arabia had announced that the 2022 Hajj pilgrimage is open for one million pilgrims from various countries.

Related news: More international airports, border posts opened to support Hajj

Although it has opened the Hajj pilgrimage for foreign pilgrims, Saudi Arabia has laid down two conditions this year. First, the pilgrims must be a maximum of 65 years old and have received a full dose of a COVID-19 vaccine approved by the Saudi Ministry of Health.

Second, pilgrims traveling from abroad must have a certificate showing negative PCR results, with the test taken no more than 72 hours prior to departure.

For the 2022 Hajj pilgrimage, Indonesia has been allotted a quota of 100,051 people. The total figure includes 92,825 pilgrims under the regular Hajj quota, 7,226 pilgrims under the special Hajj quota, and 1,905 officers.

Related news: Minister Qoumas directs officials to monitor Hajj service quality





Translator: Andi Firdaus, Raka Adji
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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