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Saudi Arabia Severely Restricts Hajj in New Hit for Economy

Saudi Allows Hajj With Limited Capacity for Residents Only: SPA

Saudi Arabia said it will restrict the hajj pilgrimage to Mecca this year to a “very limited” number of Muslims to contain the spread of the coronavirus, a historic decision that will reverberate in an economy already reeling from low oil prices and a pandemic-related lockdown.

Authorities haven’t yet settled on an exact figure. But hajj Minister Mohammed Benten spoke in terms of about 1,000 -- compared to more than 2 million who took part in the annual Islamic ritual last year. Only Saudis and foreigners residing in the kingdom will be allowed to participate in the pilgrimage this July.

“The global health circumstances forced us this year to make this exceptional hajj,” Benten said at a news conference on Tuesday

Participants must be under 65 with no chronic diseases, and test negative for the virus beforehand, according to Health Minister Tawfiq Al-Rabiah. Strict social distancing will be enforced throughout the pilgrimage, with mandatory home quarantining for participants afterward, he said.

This is the first significant restriction of the hajj since the modern Saudi kingdom was founded in 1932. While anticipated amid a global health emergency, the order will further hit an economy already forecast to contract the most in two decades as oil market turmoil and the pandemic take a toll. The kingdom’s gross domestic product is expected to shrink 4.1% this year, according to a survey of economists compiled by Bloomberg.

Napoleon’s Campaigns

Religious tourism -- of which hajj is only a part -- brought in more than $20 billion in 2018, equivalent to 2.7% of GDP, and authorities had been trying to expand the sector. Boosting a lesser, year-round pilgrimage called umrah, also suspended indefinitely because of the pandemic, is a key part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s sweeping plan to diversify away from oil.

Religious tourism is “equivalent to about a month of oil exports,” so limiting it “hampers Saudi efforts to diversify their economy,” Charles Robertson, Renaissance Capital’s global chief economist, said in an emailed note. “Saudi is one of the very few oil-exporting nations that makes serious money from tourism.”

The move will also have repercussions for Muslims around the globe. For many, the hajj is a once-in-a-lifetime journey that often requires years of waiting to secure visas and save money for the trip. In March, Benten had asked people to wait for more “clarity” before making plans for this year’s pilgrimage.

Once the exact number of pilgrims this year is agreed upon, applicants will be chosen through diplomatic missions and hajj affairs offices for various countries, he said.

The hajj has been interrupted by disease or conflict several times during the 1,400-year history of Islam, including at the end of the 18th century during Napoleon Bonaparte’s military campaigns in the Arab world.

Mecca, Islam’s holiest city, has been an epicenter for the virus outbreak in the kingdom, partly because of the city’s packed slums and large number of undocumented migrants. While the number of deaths has been relatively low -- about 1,300 -- Saudi Arabia has struggled with spiking cases as it reopens its economy. The total number of cases reported in the kingdom rose to 161,005 on Monday, including 22,219 in Mecca.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.