Ministry Of Religion Calls Proposal Of IDR 69 Million Hajj Fund As A Consequence For Hajj Funds Management In The Future

Illustration of pilgrims from Indonesia performing worship on hajj departure of 2022. (ANTARA-Hanni Sofia)

CENTRAL KALIMANTAN - Head of the Regional Office of the Ministry of Religion (Kemenag) of Central Kalimantan (Kalteng) Noor Fahmi revealed, the government proposed adjusting the costs of the pilgrimage trip to continue the benefits of managing hajj funds.

He conveyed that the proposal to increase the cost of the hajj is part of a rationalization step in order to realize a sound and sustainable management of Hajj funds.

The Ministry of Religion proposes that the average cost of the 2023 Hajj is IDR 69,193,733 per person, higher than in 2022 of IDR 39,886,009 per person.

Noor Fahmi said that the increase in costs for the pilgrimage was a consequence that was difficult to avoid in an effort to realize the sustainability of the benefits of managing haj funds for residents.

"With such a composition, the benefit fund will be reduced to 30 percent, so that the haj funds managed by the Hajj Financial Management Agency (BPKH) will not continue to be eroded," he said.

The government proposes BPIH for 2023 of IDR 98,893,909 per person with a Bipih composition of IDR 69,193,733 and an allocation of funds from the utilization of Hajj funds of IDR 29,700,175 (30 percent).

The composition of BPIH is different from that implemented by the government last year. The 2022 BPIH is set at IDR 98,379,021 per person, which includes Bipih in the amount of IDR 39,886,009 (40.54 percent) and IDR 58,493,012 (59.46 percent) of the value of the benefits of managing Hajj funds.

"The government has certainly considered it very carefully and for the common good," said Noor Fahmi.

He said that the government and the DPR would discuss the adjustments to the costs of the proposed pilgrimage before making a decision.