Riyadh: In preparation for the holy month of Ramzan 1444/2023, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) Saudi Arabia announced a plan to accommodate nearly 3 million worshippers at the two holy mosques— Makkah and Madinah, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
The General Presidency for the affairs of the two Holy Mosques, Sheikh Abdul Rahman Al Sudais, announced the launch of the largest operational plan for the holy month of Ramzan, in the history of the Presidency of the Two Holy Mosques, after the return of the Ramzan season to its previous state before the COVID-19 pandemic.
The operation plan is staffed by 12,000 employees around the clock to serve about 3 million worshipers in Grand Mosque in Makkah and Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah.
The plan focuses on the worshippers’ journey from their arrival to the outer courtyards of the two Holy Mosques and access to the services of encircling the Kaaba in the Grand Mosque and walking between the two hills of Safa and Marwa, as well as to prayer and Itikaf areas.
“Besides, the plan takes care of monitoring and governance of all services to ensure their highest standards in the two Holy Mosques,” Al Sudais said. According to him, this initiative aims to facilitate ritual circumambulation around the Holy Kaaba for about 107,000 pilgrims per hour.
Al Sudais said, “The operational presidency’s plan for the current blessed Ramadan season came as a result of a year of planning, study and hard work, and it is part of the goals of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 objectives to better the quality of services provided and enrich the religious and cultural experience of pilgrims.”
“The Ramzan operation plan is centred on field presence, holding laxity to account, providing a safe, healthy environment in the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque, diversifying initiatives, optimal utilization of artificial intelligence and use of apps in different fields for serving the highest numbers of Umrah pilgrims and visitors,” he added
Ramzan is usually the peak of the Umrah season.
The Umrah is a pilgrimage to Islam’s two holiest sites in the cities of Makkah and Madinah and can be performed at any time of the year. It is distinct from the Haj, which takes place once annually.
Ramzan is expected to start this year on March 23, although the exact date is likely to be announced on the night of March 22 by the country’s moon-sighting committee.
