The Ministry of Haj and Umrah, which launched the Umrah weekly indicator at the beginning of Hijri year 1440, released the weekly stats till Thursday after accessing information such as the number of visas issued, number of pilgrims visiting the Kingdom via air, land or sea, and how many would be in Makkah and Madinah. The number of Umrah visas issued until 25 Ramadan 1440 H (May.30, 2019) reached 7,584,424 visas with the number of pilgrims arriving in the Kingdom being 7,201,851 pilgrims. Meanwhile, the number of pilgrims still in the Kingdom is 1,056,618 pilgrims, with 732,559 pilgrims in Makkah and 324,059 in Madinah, and 6,145,233 pilgrims leaving Saudi Arabia after completing Umrah, according to the weekly data. The weekly data also included the number of Saudi staff within Umrah companies and institutions. They are 10,933 Saudis including 9,060 males and 1,873 females. Most pilgrims arrived in the Kingdom via air with a total of 6,386,751 pilgrims while 696,094 entered by land entry point and 119,006 pilgrims arrived via seaports. According to the ministry, the highest number of pilgrims of various nationalities, entering the Kingdom are 1,590,731 Pakistanis, 946,962 Indonesians, 643,563 Indians, 535,861 Egyptians, 364,707 Algerians, 334,186 Yemenis, 306,987 Turkish, 274,066 Malaysians, 270,995 Iraqis, and 200,857 Jordanians. The weekly indicator was launched to enable authorities to track the number of pilgrims coming into the Kingdom, and in turn, enrich their experiences by providing high-quality services. The indicator focuses on 5 main aspects which are the number of issued visas, the total number of pilgrims arriving in the Kingdom via air, land, and sea ports, number of pilgrims in Makkah and Madinah, and the number of pilgrims leaving the Kingdom after completing Umrah rituals. This initiative is one of the main aims of Vision 2030, which aspires to attract over 30 million Umrah pilgrims and provide them with excellent services and an outstanding experience. — SG
