Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday inaugurated the first-ever national level conference and fair on Hajj and Umrah Management in the capital.

She opened the event at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre through a virtual platform from her official residence Ganabhaban.

Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (HAAB) in collaboration with the Religious Affairs Ministry arranged “The National Conference on Hajj and Umrah Management-2022 and Hajj and Umrah Fair.”

The objectives of the event include providing the pilgrims with proper hajj-related information, making them aware about current technology-based hajj management, enabling them to directly contact with Hajj agencies and reducing the interference of middlemen and scammers.

Two seminars will be held on 'Hajj and Umrah Management: Achievements and Actions needed' and 'e-Hajj Management and Route to Mecca Initiatives' at the conference.

Also read: Online Hajj Registration from Bangladesh: Procedure and Costs

Different Hajj agencies, financial organisations and the concerned authorities have installed some 150 stalls and pavilions in the three-day Hajj and Umrah Fair, which remains open to pilgrims from 10am to 8pm every day.

Bangladesh is the 4th largest pilgrim-sending country in the world.

More than 90 percent of Bangladeshi hajj pilgrims and 100 percent umrah pilgrims go to Saudi Arabia under private management.

Also read: Hajj management in 2022 to be tech-based: State Minister

State Minister for Religious Affairs Md. Faridul Haque Khan, State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism M Mahbub Ali, Saudi Ambassador to Bangladesh Essa Yussef Essa Al Dulaihan, Religious Affairs Secretary Kazi Enamul Hassan and HAAB president Shahadat Hossain Taslim spoke at the inaugural ceremony.