NAHCON urges pilgrims to get Oral Polio, Cebro-spinal meningitis vaccines

In line with Saudi Arabian medical guidelines for intending pilgrims, the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has urged all pilgrims for 2016 Hajj to get themselves immunised with the Oral Polio and Cebro-spinal meningitis vaccines.

Adequate doses of these vaccines, the Commission noted, have been secured and deposited in all state capitals by the Federal Ministry of Health and the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency. All intending pilgrims should therefore, access the vaccines from the designated places.

In a statement, the Head of Media, NAHCON, Alhaji Uba Mana said all pilgrims should be fully immunized, at least, ten days before their travel dates. This, he stressed, was in consonance with the International Health Regulations (IHR).

State Pilgrims Welfare Board/Agencies and Commissions as well as the license tour operators, Alhaji Mana added, “should ensure that every intending pilgrims acquire a genuine yellow card obtained from the Port Health Office of their state.”

Meanwhile, NAHCON has urged States Boards, Agencies and Commissions to speed up the process of collecting the balance of the Hajj fares from intending pilgrims and remitting same to NAHCON “to facilitate early conclusion of necessary arrangements.”

The call is sequel to the release, recently of the 2016 Hajj fares. While minimum fare for a pilgrim undertaken the religious exercise from the northern departure zones is N998,248.92k, counterpart from southern departure zones pays N1,008,197.42k. Both fares go with the Basic Travel Allowance (BTA) of 750 US dollars.

For the medium fare with $1000 BTA, pilgrims from the south will pay N1,057,447.42k while their northern counterparts pay N1,047,498.92k per pilgrim. The third category (maximum fare) with $1,500 BTA, the fare for the north is N1,145,998.92k while southern pilgrims pay N1,155.947.42k.

The difference of N10,000 across all the three categories is as a result of flight distance between departure zones in Nigeria and Saudi Arabia.

For instance, flight from Lagos (one of the southern departure zones) to the King Abdulazeez International Airport in Jeddah is five hours. The same journey from Kano, one of the northern departure zones is four hours.

Other Hajj fare components, which include suite cases and uniforms, Alhaji Mana added, “are to be determined by the State Pilgrims Boards, Agencies and Commissions.”