By Joyce Remi-Babayeju
The FCT Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board, said that it has rounded up a Three- Day Mandatory Medical Screening Exercise programme for the 2026 intending pilgrims, at its Permanent Hajj Transit Camp, in Bassan Jiwa, near the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, Abuja.
In a press release signed by
Ahmad Saleh,Chief Information Officer,
FCT MPWB, made available to newsmen, the Three- Day medical Programme, which commenced on Monday (12/01/26) and ended on Wednesday (14/01/26), was organized to check their physical and mental fitness before going on the spiritual journey to Saudi Arabia for this year’s Hajj exercise.
The Board in collaboration with the FCT Public Health Department, screened the intending pilgrims from Abaji, Kwali and Gwagwalada Area Councils on the first day.
Meanwhile, pilgrims from Bwari, Kuje and the Municipal Area Council (AMAC), were screened on the second day, accordingly. Lastly, intending pilgrims from the Headquarters, Annex and the HSS Desks of the Board, were screened on the third day of the program.
However, according to the Saudi 2026 Hajj policies on Health matters, intending pilgrims must be free from the Nine (9) ailments that can deter them from performing the Hajj this year.
The Ailments include; major organs failure (Heart, Liver, Kidney, Lungs), psychiatric/ neurological disorder, chronic/ active cancer undergoing chemotherapy or radiotherapy, tuberculosis, haemorrhagic fever, associated dementia, pregnancy (at all level), amongst others.
It can be recalled that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia through the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), in line with the 2026 Hajj policies on Health, had made it mandatory for every State Muslim Pilgrims’ Welfare Board (SMPWB) to screen its intending pilgrims for this year’s Hajj, by undergoing a full medical screening exercise, in order to ascertain the intending pilgrims’ physical health and mental fitness before undertaking the spiritual journey.
A Medical Certificate of Fitness, examined and signed by a competent medical doctor, must be obtained by the intending pilgrims and upload same on the Nusuk- Masar platform, before issuing a Visa, which is prerequisite for the spiritual journey, the release stated.
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