Ogun plans Gateway Air Hajj flights for South-West pilgrims

By Adejoke Adeleye

Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, has expressed the state’s readiness to deploy Gateway Air, the state-owned airline, to airlift Ogun pilgrims directly to Saudi Arabia for Hajj, while exploring opportunities to extend the service to intending pilgrims from other South-West states.

Abiodun said the state would consider participating in the emerging private-sector-driven Hajj airlift arrangement, particularly by collaborating with Oyo, Osun, Ondo and Ekiti states to pool pilgrims and operate a more viable regional arrangement.

The governor spoke on Friday when he received a delegation of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), led by its Commissioner of Operations, Prince Anofiu Elegushi, at his office.

He said the Ogun Government had taken note of the new regulations governing private-sector participation in Hajj operations and commended NAHCON for its support in ensuring the successful and safe airlift of Ogun pilgrims from the Gateway International Airport during the last Hajj exercise.

Abiodun said the state had consistently expressed its desire to charter an aircraft under the Gateway Air brand to transport its pilgrims directly from the airport.

“We had always expressed interest that, based on what we saw last time, we would like to charter our own aircraft. We would like to brand it Gateway Air, and we would like to airlift our pilgrims ourselves because we believe that we can do it efficiently,” he said.

The governor said Ogun’s experience in developing the Gateway International Airport and establishing Gateway Air had demonstrated the state’s capacity to organise and manage such operations efficiently.

He also praised the collaboration between the state and NAHCON during the previous Hajj, saying the arrangement enabled Ogun pilgrims to begin their journey to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from an airport within the state.

“For us, it was about facilitating our pilgrims to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia conveniently. We have invested in a world-class airport, and we thought there was no better way for our citizens to begin to enjoy that airport than for our pilgrims to board their flights from that airport,” he said.

Abiodun said although the initiative presented challenges initially, the support received from NAHCON helped both sides navigate them successfully.

He also welcomed NAHCON’s proposal for South-West states to establish a common body, modelled on the Oodua Investment structure, to coordinate Hajj operations and represent participating states as a private operator.

The governor said he would present the proposal to other members of the Oodua Investment Group for consideration.

On religious harmony, Abiodun said Ogun had remained peaceful under his administration, noting that the state had not experienced religious crisis.

He attributed the situation to the cordial relationship among residents irrespective of their religious affiliations.

Earlier, Elegushi said NAHCON had commenced registration for the forthcoming Hajj, explaining that the registration deadline initially scheduled to close on Friday would be extended to allow more intending pilgrims to register.

He said the early registration was necessary because Saudi Arabian authorities required accurate figures of intending pilgrims well ahead of the pilgrimage to facilitate adequate planning and preparation.

Elegushi also disclosed that the commission was working to secure additional Hajj slots, following concerns that the available allocation was inadequate.

He congratulated the Ogun Government on the direct airlift of the state’s first batch of pilgrims from the Gateway International Airport during the last Hajj, describing the development as a landmark achievement for Ogun and the South-West.

According to him, Nigeria’s Hajj quota, which traditionally stood at about 95,000 pilgrims, had gradually fallen to 50,000, comprising 10,000 slots for tour operators and 40,000 shared among the states.

He linked the changes to Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, which seeks greater private-sector participation and digitalisation of Hajj and Umrah operations.

Elegushi said the development had prompted NAHCON to encourage states to begin preparing for greater private-sector involvement in Hajj operations and position themselves to compete as private operators.

However, he identified the Saudi requirement that independent operators must have a minimum of 2,000 pilgrims as a major challenge for individual states.

He noted that even Lagos State currently did not have the required number of pilgrims, making it difficult for individual South-West states to independently meet the threshold.

The NAHCON commissioner said the proposed South-West company would therefore provide a means of pooling pilgrims from participating states to meet the requirement.

He urged Abiodun to ensure that Ogun succeeds in deploying Gateway Air for its pilgrims, following the state’s successful use of the Gateway International Airport during the previous Hajj.

Elegushi said payments for the forthcoming Hajj were still ongoing and should be completed by December 2, 2026.

He added that pilgrims’ data would be uploaded before the commencement of the airlift, which is expected to begin around the end of April or early May.

The commissioner further disclosed that Saudi authorities had introduced about nine new health-related policies, including mandatory screening of intending pilgrims for nine specified diseases before they could be cleared for the pilgrimage.

He commended Ogun for complying with health protocols during the last Hajj and urged the state to sustain the practice to ensure that its pilgrims meet all requirements for the forthcoming exercise.

Dear Vows