Jakarta (ANTARA) - President Prabowo Subianto has set up the Hajj and Umrah Agency as a separate entity from the Ministry of Religious Affairs to allow the government to focus more on safe and comfortable pilgrimage implementation.This was conveyed by head of the Hajj and Umrah Agency, Mochamad Irfan Yusuf, after attending the inauguration of five heads of special agencies and six deputy heads of agencies at the State Palace, Jakarta, on Tuesday.
"Mr. Prabowo's hope is that we can be fully independent next year, (as) an independent Hajj organizing agency," he said.
There are two missions that Yusuf and his staff are currently carrying out to fulfill Prabowo's hopes for improving Hajj and Umrah services, namely ensuring that all pilgrims depart safely and providing comfort during their pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.
Baca juga: for returning Indonesian pilgrims
To realize comfortable Hajj and Umrah, he added, Prabowo has asked the Hajj and Umrah Agency to set up a special area for Indonesian pilgrims in Saudi Arabia. According to him, this step is aimed at making all activities of Indonesian pilgrims centralized in one area.
Baca juga: Making improvements for smooth Hajj flights
Regarding the task of realizing safe travel for pilgrims, Yusuf said that he will work on it based on the results of the evaluation of previous Hajj and Umrah seasons. Though collaboration with the Directorate of Hajj and Umrah of the Ministry of Religious Affairs will continue, he aims to make the agency fully independent from next year.
In response to a question about organizing Hajj independently, he informed that the deadline to become fully independent is 2026.
"In 2025, we will still collaborate with the Hajj directorate," he said.