The United Arab Emirates (UAE) will cover the Hajj expenses of 344 Ghanaian pilgrims for the 2027 Hajj season.

This forms part of an initiative reflecting the strong friendship and people-to-people ties between the two countries, which is being undertaken under the directives of the President of the UAE, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

A dummy cheque to support the initiative was presented at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Accra by the UAE Ambassador to Ghana, Dr Abdulla AlMandous, and the Deputy Head of Mission, Khalifa Almehrzi, to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.

The presentation was witnessed by the Minister of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Mahama Ayariga, the Deputy Minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Yussif Issaka Jajah and the Chairman of the Ghana Hajj Board, Alhaji Abdul Rauf Ibrahim Tanko.

The initiative would be implemented in coordination with the Pilgrims Affairs Office of Ghana (PAOG) under the Ghana Hajj Board.

For the 344 beneficiaries, the sponsorship is expected to make it possible for them to undertake a journey that holds deep spiritual and personal significance.

The UAE, in a statement, said that for many of the beneficiaries, performing Hajj represented a long-held dream shared with their families and communities.

The gesture forms part of the UAE's longstanding commitment to humanitarian support and its tradition of extending assistance intended to make a meaningful difference in people's lives.

The UAE said it demonstrated the values of generosity, tolerance and compassion that underpinned its engagement with communities around the world.

The sponsorship, the statement said, came amid strong and growing relations between the UAE and Ghana, characterised by mutual respect and cooperation across diplomatic, economic, development and people-to-people ties.

The support for Ghanaian pilgrims adds a people-centred dimension to the bilateral relationship and highlights the connections between the two countries beyond government and commercial engagement, it said.

The journey to Makkah would be more than a pilgrimage for the 344 beneficiaries and their families, the statement said, describing it as the fulfilment of a deeply held aspiration and an expression of the friendship between the peoples of the UAE and Ghana.

The initiative reflected the humanitarian and people-to-people dimensions of the growing relations between Ghana and the UAE.