Saudi- Cameroon lauds Haj preparations

(MENAFN- Arab News) RIYADH: Cameroon's Ambassador Iya Tidjani on Monday expressed his appreciation for preparations the Kingdom has made in connection with the Haj pilgrimage this year.
'One thing I have noticed is we can now do things electronically like applying to come for Haj or accessing the Saudi Embassy for whatever information a pilgrim needs' said the Cameroonian envoy.
He also noted that pilgrims could now travel between Makkah and Mina and Arafat by railway which was not possible before.
'Some pilgrims could use the service but not all. I hope however that all hajis will be able to avail themselves of this service in the future' said Tidjani.
He also noted the excellent transportation and accommodation facilities for the pilgrims.
He added that the first group of Cameroonian pilgrims will arrive in the Kingdom on Sept. 3.
'They will take off from the city of Garoua in the northern part of Cameroon and arrive in Madinah on Sept. 3' he added. They will be headed by Boubakari Oumarou.
He said that his country has a quota of 10000 pilgrims although only 4500 had been given the green light to come for Haj this year.
The same number of Cameroonian pilgrims also came to perform Haj in the Kingdom in 2014.
'We have applied for more with the Saudi Ministry of Haj but our request was not granted. Besides there's also the problem of the high cost of performing Haj' he said.
He expressed the hope though that more Cameroonian pilgrims could come for Haj as an expression of their Islamic faith in the future.
'Like any other country Cameroon wants to send more pilgrims for Haj because it has excellent bilateral ties with Saudi Arabia' he said.
He noted that there are nearly 50 Cameroonian scholars enrolled in Arabic and religious courses at universities in the Saudi capital.