RIYADH
Millions of Muslims from 160 countries of the world have arrived in the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj. Stoning the devil was conducted in the scorching heat of around 42 degrees Celsius. Saudi Arabia claims that a record 2.5 million people may reach Mecca for Hajj and Umrah, which will be a record in the history of Hajj travel.
However, this figure has reached only 2 million. For the first time after Kovid-19, Hajj has been organized without any restrictions. Due to Corona, only 1 million people were allowed to perform Hajj last year. At the same time, only 10,000 people were allowed in 2020 and 59,000 people in 2021. Prince Mohammed bin Salman is very happy to reach millions of Muslims again in Saudi Arabia.
There is great fear about the future economy of Saudi Arabia, which is called an oil mine. Saudi Arabia is now beginning to realize what will happen if the oil reserves run out soon. That too is when the world is moving towards electronic cars and they don’t need oil. For this reason, the Vision 2030 plan has been made under the leadership of Saudi Salman.
Under this, Saudi Arabia wants to promote religious tourism in the country. Saudi Arabia is eyeing the Hajj and the billions of dollars in revenue it generates, therefore promoting it heavily. According to the latest estimates, Saudi Arabia’s Hajj tourism market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 7 per cent in the global market. Saudi Arabia’s Hajj and Umrah tourism markets are estimated to reach $350 billion in revenue by 2032.
Before Corona, it was estimated that by the year 2022, the income from the 10-day Hajj would reach 30 billion dollars and 100,000 people would get jobs every year. At that time, 21 million people were estimated to have reached Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi government wants the number of pilgrims to exceed 30 million by 2030, which analysts consider too ambitious a target. According to the news, Saudi Arabia has recovered from the corona epidemic very quickly. This is considered a very good sign for the Saudi Prince’s vision of 2030. The Saudi prince wants to reduce his dependence on oil by 2030 and diversify the economy. The Saudi Arabian government has spent billions of dollars to build large-scale infrastructure in Mecca to promote Hajj.
The Saudi government is running a huge project in Abraaj Qudai in Makkah. It also includes the world’s largest hotel. It has 12 towers, which will be 4 and 5 stars. Each tower will be 45 stories high and will have 10,000 bedrooms, 70 restaurants, and 4 helipads. Apart from this, there will be 5 floors, on which members of the royal family of Saudi Arabia will be included. Saudi Arabia’s Haj market includes pilgrims from Asia, Africa and the Pacific region. It is the dream of every Muslim to perform the Hajj and it has taken a toll on the Saudi economy.
