The Chairman of the five-member interim Hajj Taskforce established by the President to oversee activities related to the Hajj pilgrimage, Alhaji Collins Dauda, has revealed that the previous NPP government left behind a public debt of Gh₵81,142,899.90 from past Hajj pilgrimage trips.

In a press conference on Wednesday, February 5, Mr Dauda stated that this debt is owed to various firms that provided services for the pilgrimage.

Mr Dauda, who is also the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for Asutifi South in the Ahafo Region, announced that the government has reduced the cost of Hajj fare from Gh₵75,000 last year to Gh₵62,000 this year.

This was a major promise by President John Mahama before he won the 2024 elections. This decision is expected to increase Ghana's quota for the number of Muslims who will embark on the pilgrimage.

“During the 2024 presidential electioneering campaign, John Dramani Mahama, the President of Ghana, pledged to the Muslim community that if he won the elections, he would do everything possible to reduce the hajj fare. That was to enable our Muslim brothers and sisters to perform the Hajj at a reduced fare. He also committed himself to making Hajj accessible and affordable. We will recall that last year, the fare was set at GH₵75,000.

“Today, I am pleased to announce that President Mahama has been able to honor this commitment. He set up a task force made up of four Muslims to participate in the Hajj conference which took place in January in Saudi Arabia and to also have the opportunity to engage our service providers in Saudi Arabia, specifically in Mecca and Madina.

“Through diligent negotiations and collaborations, the task force has successfully secured a significant reduction in the Hajj fare for 2025. Upon the advice of the president, the fare for 2025 Hajj has been set at GH₵62,000, which is equivalent to $4,130.”

Listen to him in the audio below