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The Vice President, Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia, has announced government’s plans to provide food and transportation for all Ghanaian pilgrims who travel to Mecca.

The previous Hajj Board left a huge debt of GHc23 million cedis after funding air tickets of some pilgrims over the years.
Even though government is struggling to pay off the debt, the Vice President stated that some of the initiatives being introduced are necessary to help ease the plight of pilgrims while they are there. 

Dr. Bawumia said this while interacting with the Muslim community in Sunyani in the Brong Ahafo Region, as part of his working visit.

“It is very stressful when you go on Hajj. Government is planning to feed you three times a day when you go to Mecca. It is one surest way of making the Hajj smooth. Another plan by government is to provide pilgrims with means of transport. When you reach Mecca, we have realized that transportation is a major challenge, so we will provide buses for wherever you wish to go. When you are in Mecca, a lot of pilgrims wait for long hours at the Airport for flight back home; now while you wait, we will provide you with food.”

Measures in place to ensure incident-free Hajj

His assurance comes days after he indicated that government had put measures in place to address the challenges that have marred previous Hajj pilgrimages.

He stated that the government is committed to ensuring that this year’s pilgrimage comes off without the hitches which have been associated with the process in the past.

Addressing some Muslims at Shama in the Western Region, Dr. Bawumia said: “After the prayer and fasting this month, we’ll be preparing to leave for Hajj. We’ve instituted some measures to make this year’s pilgrimage a smooth one. We’ll prompt you before you get to the Hajj village by sending text messages to all who applied for this year’s pilgrimage. This is to remove all challenges that have been associated with the process in the past.”