Riyadh: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) on Saturday launched the “Makkah Route” initiative in five countries. This is the fourth year since its launch for the first time in 2019.
The five countries featured in the Makkah Route initiative are— Pakistan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Morocco, and Bangladesh.
The Saudi ministry of interior said that the Makkah Route initiative aims to receive pilgrims and complete their procedures from their countries with ease, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
The initiative will offer pre-clearance of immigration for pilgrims at their respective points of embarkation.
Pilgrims arriving from these countries can bypass entry procedures on their arrival in the Kingdom. They can move directly to buses to take them to their places of residence. Service authorities then deliver their luggage to their place of residency in Makkah and in Madinah. Their luggage is handled and delivered directly to them at their accommodation.
What is the Makkah Route initiative?
The initiative includes the issuance of visas, customs and passport procedures, and facilitating health requirements. It also involves sorting luggage according to transportation, and housing arrangements in Saudi Arabia.
The initiative is being implemented in collaboration with the Health Ministry, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the General Authority of Civil Aviation, the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority, the Saudi Authority for Data and Artificial Intelligence, the Guests of God Service Program, Saudi Passports, and the Saudi digital security firm Elm Co.
The initiative is part of Saudi Arabia’s Guests of God Service Program. King Salman inaugurated the program in 2019 which seeks to provide visitors to the holy sites with the finest possible services. It also helps them in performing the Haj rituals with ease.
Haj officially begins on the 8th of Dhul-Hijjah and ends on the 13th day of the same Islamic month. This year it falls between July 7 to 12. One million international and domestic pilgrims will perform Haj this year.
