By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

Nigeria may not fully utilise the hajj seats allocated it by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the 2025 hajj pilgrimage due to low turnout as the payment deadline lapses today.

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) set the payment deadline for January 31, and reports indicate that there will likely be a repeat of last year’s situation where only 51,447 pilgrims paid, despite Nigeria receiving 95,000 slots.

The same number of slots have been allocated for 2025, but officials attribute the low turnout to the high hajj fares and short payment window.

This year’s hajj fare ranges between N8.3m and N8.7m for pilgrims travelling with state welfare boards. Those booking with private tour operators face even higher fares.

The early payment deadline was set by Saudi Arabia’s new policy, which requires all participating countries to finalise agreements four months before the start of the hajj to allow for better logistics planning.

While the payment deadline was extended last year due to low turnout, it remains unclear if that will happen this year.

FCT

In the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the territory’s Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board said only 700 intending pilgrims had completed payments by the deadline.

The board was allocated 4,148 seats, with 40% (1,659) reserved for the Jaiz Bank hajj scheme. The remaining 60% (2,489) were for general pilgrims, but as of January 30, only 700 had paid.

Muhammad Lawal Aliyu, the board’s spokesman, said while people are still rushing to make payments, the final count will be determined after the deadline.

States

In Kano State, which was allocated 4,356 seats, 2,100 intending pilgrims had completed their payments by January 30. The state government set February 3 as the payment deadline.

Sokoto State has 5,216 seats allocation, but officials are still compiling payment data from local governments and expect to finalize the list by February 2.

In Kaduna, over 6,000 seats have been allocated, and registration continues at 24 centres across the state. Officials could not confirm the exact number of registered pilgrims as of January 30, but they are hopeful that many will pay before the February 5 deadline.

In Kwara, the Pilgrims Welfare Board confirmed that over 1,000 pilgrims had made payments, with 4,365 seats allocated. The figure is expected to rise before the payment deadline.

Gombe had 1,480 seats allocated, but only 500 pilgrims had paid by January 30. The state is still encouraging more pilgrims to complete payments before the February 2025 deadline.

In Lagos, 500 pilgrims had completed their registration, but less than 50% of the 2,000 allocated seats have been filled as of January 30.

Officials cited the high cost of the hajj as a barrier, noting that many pilgrims were struggling to pay due to the economic situation in the country.

Alhaji Abdulfatah Abdulmojeed, a stakeholder in hajj operations, urged states to remit the funds for pilgrims who have paid to NAHCON to avoid delays in the preparation for the pilgrimage.

He also emphasised the importance of the Hajj Savings Scheme, similar to those in countries like Indonesia and Malaysia, to help Nigerian pilgrims manage the high costs.

He noted that the current economic situation may prevent Nigeria from filling all 95,000 hajj slots.

Efforts to reach NAHCON’s spokesman, Muhammad Ahmed, were unsuccessful. His phone number wasn’t reachable, and he also didn’t respond to text messages.

However, an internal source indicated that the commission might not extend the deadline due to the agreements already made with service providers for the 2025 Hajj.

He said early payments are crucial to securing accommodation and other logistics for Nigerian pilgrims.

By Faruk Shuaibu & Hussein Yahaya (Abuja) Salim Umar Ibrahim (Kano) Abubakar Auwal, (Sokoto) Mohammed Ibrahim Yaba (Kaduna) Mumini Abdulkareem (Ilorin) Haruna Gimba Yaya (Gombe) & Abdullateef Aliyu (Lagos)

By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

South African model Tshego Gaelae has been crowned the winner of the 40th Mrs World pageant, held in Las Vegas, USA.

Sri Lanka’s Ishadi Amanda was named the first runner-up, while Thailand’s Ploy Panperm secured the second runner-up position.

Celebrating her win, Gaelae expressed her gratitude in an Instagram post, writing, “To God Be The Glory. Thank you so much for the love and support, I am beyond grateful and elated! My beautiful South Africa, the crown is coming Home.”

Tshego Gaelae
Tshego Gaelae. Photo: Instagram (@tshego_gaelae)
Mrs World is the first beauty pageant for married women, conceived in 1984.

The organisation that supported her journey, Mrs South Africa, also hailed the achievement in a social media post, stating, “From Soweto to Vegas and now the World, @mrsworldpageant The Crown is Coming Home! Thank you to everyone who supported our Queen on her incredible Journey.

“Thank you to the @mrsworldpageant organisation and judges for everything you do, and for seeing our queen and her brilliance. What an honour to have a South African queen as the 40th Anniversary Mrs World, and first ever Black Mrs World.”

Gaelae’s triumph comes in the wake of intensified beauty pageant rivalry between South Africa and Nigeria.

In 2024, Miss Universe Nigeria Chidimma Adetshina made history as the first Nigerian and West African to finish as the first runner-up at the Miss Universe 2024 competition held in Mexico City in November.

Miss Universe Chidimma Adetshina
Chidimma Adetshina
Adetshina, who also won the title of Miss Universe Africa and Oceania, faced scrutiny over her South African citizenship, a controversy that led to her withdrawal from the Miss South Africa pageant.

Adetshina was then invited to participate in the Miss Universe Nigeria 2024 pageant, which she won.

The situation fueled discussions over the growing competition between both nations