PUTRAJAYA: The Saudi Arabian government has approved a Haj quota of 31,600 for Malaysia for this year.
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Religious Affairs) Datuk Mohd Na'im Mokhtar said that the approval was rubberstamped by the Saudi Arabian Minister for Haj and Umrah, Dr Tawfiq Fawzan Al-Rabia at the meeting in conjunction with the 2023 Haj and Umrah Services Conference yesterday (Jan 9).
According to him, the special meeting took place to discuss the aspects of preparation for haj season this year.
He said that during the meeting, Dr Tawfiq Fawzan also praised Malaysia, especially Tabung Haji (TH) for the good and commendable management of pilgrims especially in terms of how systematic and how well they are treated, which should be an example to others.
"Tabung Haji will always make the effort and work hard towards providing the best service for Malaysian haj pilgrims and will definitely abide by the stipulated rules and regulations implemented by the Saudi Arabian government," he said in a statement issued today (Jan 10).
Last year, the Saudi Arabian government approved a haj quota of 14,306 for Malaysia which was 45 per cent of the usual annual quota that is received and used for all countries.
The haj pilgrims allowed are those aged 65 and below, who do not have any chronic ailments, have Covid-19 vaccination certification and who need to submit a negative PCR Covid test within 72 hours of departure.
Mohd Na'im said that on behalf of the Malaysian government he expressed gratitude and appreciation while thanking the Saudi Arabian government for the quota that has been allocated.
He added that he is confident the assessment has already been done by the Saudi Arabian government from all aspects to ensure for the safety of the pilgrims from all over the world when they perform the pilgrimage.
"I appeal to all Muslims to come together and pray so that Allah blesses the haj for this year and so that Tabung Haji can manage the journey of the pilgrims as best and as smoothly as possible," he said.