As many as 53,000 Umrah pilgrims from Oman visited the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia last year, marking an increase of 207 per cent compared to 2022, according to Dr Tawfiq Fawzan al Rabiah, Minister of Haj and Umrah of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Speaking to the Observer on the sidelines of the press conference held while wrapping up his two-day visit to the Sultanate of Oman, Al Rabiah said no less than 14,000 Umrah pilgrims came through the Rub Al Khali port in the year 2023.
“We are happy to have hosted 53,000 pilgrims for Umrah last year, which is an increase of 207 per cent and out of them, 14,000 used the newly opened Rub Al Khali port to reach the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as we constantly work to facilitate procedures and legislation to enable the arrival of more pilgrims, including the decision to allow residents of GCC countries to obtain a tourist visa for the purpose of Umrah,” he said.
Sultanate of Oman, represented by the Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs (MoARA) and the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah (MoHU) of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia held introductory meeting on the government platform 'Nusuk' (nusuk.sa) along with an interactive exhibition with the aim of raising the level of services provided to Umrah performers and visitors to Mecca and Madina for both Omani citizens and residents of the Sultanate of Oman.
“Moreover, we are seeking ways to discuss ways to improve the procedures at the Rub Al Khali port, in addition to initiatives to improve visa issuance procedures, including facilitating the procedures for issuing group visas for residents of the Sultanate of Oman,” he said, while assuring the Kingdom’s support in improving the experience of the pilgrims and increasing the number of pilgrims, in line with the goals of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030.
The Kingdom’s Vision 2030 presents an integrated strategy to develop the Haj and Umrah system through the launch of the programme for serving the guests of God, a programme that works on several initiatives to facilitate the arrival of more pilgrims.
“I assure you of the Kingdom’s commitment and honour to serve the guests of God from all over the world, especially our brothers and sisters from the Sultanate of Oman. We are also seeking ways to enrich their overall experience," he said.
"We are pleased with Flynas’ announcement of the launch of 4 scheduled flights from Salalah to Jeddah starting in the second half of this year. We expect that these efforts will contribute to enabling the arrival of more Umrah pilgrims, citizens and residents of the Sultanate of Oman, and improving their experience," he said.
"We also would like to announce the opening of a visa centre during the first quarter of this year, from which we aim to provide better services to improve the experience of those coming to the Kingdom," he added.
The minister of Haj and Umrah also met with a group of Omani tourism and Umrah companies on the sidelines of the exhibition, which is the unified national digital platform for serving Umrah pilgrims. Through the platform, pilgrims and their families can complete all procedures for the Umrah trip, starting with the very planning of Umrah, issuing visas, and completing reservations, so that they can complete Umrah with ease.
On Wednesday, a session of talks was held in between Oman and Saudi Arabia. The talks dealt with the integration of efforts to make arrangements for pilgrims wishing to perform Haj and Umrah rituals.
Dr Mohammed bin Said al Maamari, Minister of Awqaf and Religious Affairs, headed the Omani side at the talks, while Dr Tawfiq Fawzan al Rabiah, Minister of Haj and Umrah in Saudi Arabia, headed his country’s side.
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