Minister Shaheem pledges to improve facilities and accommodation in Mina and Arafat for future Maldivian pilgrims. He highlights the many efforts being undertaken to further improve hajj services.
Minister of Islamic Affairs Dr Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed has assured the pubic that better facilities and accommodation will be provided for Maldivian pilgrims in Mina and Arafat.
Speaking at the first 'Ahaa' public forum - a gathering where the public can freely pose questions to cabinet ministers regarding government initiatives - held last night at Sultan Park, Dr Shaheem said that if was a directive from President Dr Mohamed Muizzu himself to improve facilities provided for Maldivian pilgrims when in Mina and Arafat.
The minister confirmed that these arrangements have now been made.
"Allah willing, the experience that Maldivian pilgrims have in Mina and Arafath during this year's Hajj, the accommodation and facilities, will be different. Maldives Hajj Corporation is working to ensure this. Saudi Arabia's Hajj Ministry has made the arrangements as per our request," Dr Shaheem revealed last night, noting this is a major step forward in the matter.
Dr Shaheem has recently completed an official trip to Saudi Arabia. He lamented that in the ten years between his last having filled the position of Islamic Affairs Minister, and today, no other ministers filling the position has made a similar trip to Saudi Arabia.
"I was the last one to go [to Saudi Arabia]. That was in 2014. Since then, not a single Islamic Minister of Maldives has made an official trip to Saudi Arabia. This is regrettable," Shaheem said.
He highlighted that Saudi Arabia is the nation most involved in providing fundamental religious services to the Maldives.
Shaheem further noted that on the instructions of President Dr Muizzu, deliberations are underway now to explore possibilities of increasing the hajj pilgrims quota presently granted to the Maldives.
Sharing that he had met with the Saudi Arabian minister in charge of hajj and umrah, Shaheem said, "It will not be the most professional thing to do to share his response and other details of this deliberation in a forum like this. However, I can assure you all work has been done to address this matter."
As per the minister, the Maldives Hajj Corporation is also working on revising hajj prices with an economic view in response to advice from the President.
"Our hope is to bring about a lot of changes in the next two years. We want to go forward with a system like that of Malaysia's Hajj Fund or Hajj Association," Shaheem said, expressing confidence that this can be achieved through the right efforts.
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