DHAKA: Saudi Arabia will launch the Nusuk platform in Dhaka on Thursday, Saudi tourism authorities told Arab News, as the Kingdom hopes to better facilitate Umrah pilgrims from Bangladesh.
The South Asian nation is the fourth-largest Muslim-majority country in the world, where over 150 million people profess Islam. Every year, thousands of Bangladeshis visit Saudi Arabia for Umrah and Hajj pilgrimages.
A Saudi delegation led by the Minister of Hajj and Umrah Tawfig Al-Rabiah is visiting Dhaka on Aug. 24-25 to promote the Kingdom’s efforts in transforming the Hajj and Umrah ecosystem, during which he will also inaugurate the launch of the Nusuk platform in Bangladesh.
“In order to facilitate the Umrah pilgrims and tourists from Bangladesh, the Nusuk Roadshow has been organized for the first time in Dhaka. The main objective of this roadshow is to launch the Nusuk platform in the country … Bangladesh is a very important market for Saudi Arabia,” Alhasan Aldabbagh, Nusuk president for Asia Pacific markets, told Arab News on Monday.
The platform, also launched earlier this year in Malaysia and Singapore by the Saudi Tourism Authority, allows pilgrims to plan and book visits to the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah, and beyond.
Aldabbagh said the platform works as a digital passport that eases the journey for pilgrims, while also making it more accessible.
Saudi Arabia has so far welcomed around 332,000 travelers from Bangladesh this year, which exceeded the Kingdom’s target by 7 percent, he added.
“Dhaka is one of our top five markets in the Asia Pacific region. So, this market has a very important role in achieving Saudi’s Vision 2030 goals,” Aldabbagh said, referring to Saudi Arabia’s transformation plan that also focuses on the tourism sector.
“Saudi Arabia is looking forward to welcoming 700,000 Bangladeshis this year, and in 2030, it will be 2.6 million.”
In the Kingdom, travelers with a personal visit visa can perform Umrah and also explore various tourist destinations in the Gulf nation, including its historical and cultural sites.
