Indonesia Asks Saudi Arabia to Increase Hajj Quota by 100 Percent

TheIndonesia.id - The government asked Saudi Arabia to increase Indonesia’s hajj quota by up to 100 percent, the Ministry of Religious Affairs has confirmed.

Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas said his office had communicated with authorities in Saudi Arabia and informed them about the request to double the hajj quota designated for Indonesia for 2023.

“Regarding the quota, the decision is within the Saudi Arabian government. [However] we have informed them that we ask for hajj quota to be increased by 100 percent,” Qoumas said on Friday, September 2, as reported by Antara.

For hajj pilgrimage this year, Indonesia got quota of 100,051.

“Alhamdulillah, due to our efforts and prayers, we will send 100,051 hajj pilgrims and 1,901 officers this year,” the Minister said on April 19.

The first batch of pilgrims left for Saudi Arabia on June 4, and it was the first hajj departure since Indonesia suspended sending pilgrims in 2020 and 2021 due to COVID-19 outbreak.

Chairman of Commission VII of the House of Representatives Yandri Susanto previously said hajj quota for Indonesia set by Saudi Arabia is the largest among other countries even though the figure is only about 48 percent from the 2019’s quota.

Minister Qoumas lastly said he hoped the cost for hajj can lower next year to help pilgrims as it was reported that hajj operational cost in 2022 rose, and authorities were forced to allocate Rp 1.5 trillion (US$103 million).