2026 Hajj: NAHCON fixes N8.5m tentative fare

…as Nigeria gets 95,000 slots

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has tentatively fixed a deposit of ₦8.5 million as the fare for the 2026 Hajj, pending final negotiations on all service contracts.

The fare was announced by NAHCON Chairman/CEO, Professor Abdullahi Saleh Usman, yesterday at a post-2025 Hajj strategic meeting with chairmen and secretaries of state pilgrims’ welfare boards held at the Hajj House headquarters of the Commission in Abuja.

According to NAHCON’s Assistant Director, Information and Publication, Fatima Sanda Usara, in a statement, the fare was collectively agreed upon by participants at the strategic meeting held to review the 2025 Hajj operations and commence early preparations for next year’s exercise.

In his opening remarks, Prof Usman expressed appreciation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his steadfast support to Nigerian pilgrims and NAHCON.

The NAHCON boss highlighted the Federal Government’s intervention that enabled the airliners approved for the 2025 Hajj operations to accept payments in Naira, which he said shielded Nigerian pilgrims from foreign exchange shocks.

Usman also commended the Federal Government for directing the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to suspend its earlier policy mandating credit card-only payments for Basic Travel Allowance (BTA) to pilgrims.

According to him, the policy could have disadvantaged many Nigerian pilgrims due to limited awareness and sensitisation.

Prof Usman also announced that Nigeria had retained its 95,000-slot allocation from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He added that the allocation of slots to state welfare boards remains the same as last year.

He then encouraged participants to offer frank, constructive evaluations of the 2025 exercise, focusing on what worked, the challenges encountered, and areas for improvement.

Speaking at the meeting, NAHCON’s Commissioner of Operations, Prince Anofiu Elegushi, informed participants of the possibility of rolling over contracts for the four airlines that operated during the 2025 Hajj — Air Peace, Max Air, Umza Air Services, and Saudi Arabia-based FlyNas.

This, Elegushi explained, was due to time constraints and bureaucratic hurdles juxtaposed with the Saudi calendar and its expectations from Hajj-participating countries, adding that this would give Nigeria the opportunity to book airlift slots early.

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On his part, the Commissioner in charge of Planning, Research and Statistics, Information and Library Services (PRSILS), Prof Abubakar Abubakar Yagawal, informed the gathering of the 2026 Hajj calendar released by the Saudi Arabian authorities.

Also speaking at the meeting, the Chairman of the Forum of States Executive Secretaries, Alhaji Idris Almakura, thanked NAHCON for organising the meeting and urged the Commission to strengthen collaboration with state boards through improved communication and timely clarifications.

Almakura, who doubles as the Executive Secretary of the Nasarawa State Muslim Pilgrims’ Board, also called for expedited reconciliation of pending matters from the 2025 Hajj with a view to ensuring a smooth transition into the 2026 planning.

The meeting, Usara noted, was attended by all executive members of the Forum of States, including Deputy Chairman, Alhaji Aliyu Faruku Yaro (ES, Kebbi State), and Malam Abubakar Salihu, who is the Secretary of the Forum and ES, Adamawa State.

She added that at the end of the meeting, participants expressed their commitment to offer feedback on unresolved issues after consultations with their respective state members.

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