President Bola Tinubu has directed the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) to immediately reduce the cost of the 2026 Hajj fares recently announced by the commission.
The Deputy Chief of Staff to the President, Senator Ibrahim Hadeija, disclosed this on Monday while briefing State House correspondents after a meeting with NAHCON officials at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that NAHCON, after due consultations with relevant stakeholders, announced the 2026 Hajj fares as follows: Maiduguri-Yola Zone (Yobe, Borno, Adamawa, Taraba) will pay ₦8,318,336.67; Northern States will pay ₦8,244,813.67; while Southern States will pay ₦8,561,013.67, respectively.
However, Hadeija said the President felt the need for the commission to explore the possibility of reducing the Hajj fare.
He said, “This meeting was essentially called at the instance of His Excellency, the Vice President, to look at the possibility of reducing the Hajj fare for the 2026 pilgrimage.
“As you know, about 95 to 96 per cent of the Hajj fare component is foreign exchange-based.
“The fares announced by NAHCON were based on a very pessimistic exchange rate of ₦1,550 to the dollar.
“But the rates have continued to improve steadily, with the naira appreciating due to the ongoing economic reforms implemented by the government.”
Hadeija stated that the Vice President observed that since pilgrims during the last Hajj exercise paid between ₦8.5 million and ₦8.6 million based on a weaker exchange rate, the improved rate should now benefit intending pilgrims.
He continued, “We should also pass the benefits to them. All the officers of the Hajj Commission are here and have been directed to immediately review the fares based on more realistic exchange rates.
“If applied, we should be able to bring the Hajj fare down to between ₦7.6 million and ₦7.7 million. The final figure will be announced in the next two days.
“This, however, depends on the prompt remittance of funds from the State Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Boards. The faster the pilgrims pay their fares and the funds are remitted to the Hajj Commission, the faster they can be transferred to the Central Bank of Nigeria to purchase foreign exchange.
“If this is achieved, we foresee a situation where pilgrims this year will enjoy a significant reduction in Hajj fares.”
On his part, the Chairman of the Kebbi State Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board, Alhaji Faruk Yaro, expressed gratitude to President Tinubu and Vice President Shettima for their timely intervention.
He said, “We are very happy because the President and the Vice President have already intervened. We thank God for what they have done, which is expected to bring down the cost of the Hajj fare.”
Also, the Secretary of NAHCON, Dr. Mustapha Mohammad, described the directive as a welcome development, saying that a lower Hajj fare would enable more Muslims to participate in the pilgrimage.
He said, “As directed by the Vice President, we will work tirelessly between today and tomorrow to ensure that we reduce the fare to an affordable rate so that every Muslim will have the opportunity to perform this very important pillar of Islam.”
NAN