Ministry Of Hajj: Waiting Period For Hajj Candidates Throughout Indonesia Becomes 26.4 Years

Head of the Public Relations Bureau of the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah Hasan Afandi (center) ANTARA/Uyu Septiyati Liman.

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah (Kemenhaj) has implemented a new formula in calculating the allocation of hajj quotas per province for the year of departure 2026 so that the waiting period for prospective pilgrims throughout Indonesia becomes a uniform of around 26.4 years.

Head of the Public Relations Bureau of the Ministry of Haj Hasan Afandi stated that the formula that is now used to calculate the quota of pilgrims per province is that the number of waiting lists in the province is divided into a total national waiting list, then multiplied by a total national regular quota.

"When it is calculated to use (forms) like that, the waiting period (candidates) for Hajj pilgrims in all provinces will be the same. Exactly (for) 26.4 years (or if it is rounded) 27 years of waiting period," Hasan Afandi said as quoted by ANTARA, Friday, November 28.

The current provincial quota calculation, he continued, fully uses an approach to the proportion of the waiting list, no longer solely based on the Muslim population in the province.

He said the policy was implemented to realize the principles of inter-regional justice and overcome significant differences in the waiting period between regions that had been happening so far.

Previously, there was a gap, he said, that prospective pilgrims in one area had to wait up to 47 years, as had happened in South Sulawesi. Meanwhile, in other areas, such as Southwest Maluku Regency, it only waited 11 years.

"When using a formula like that, a sense of justice arises, making the queue converge to the middle, so it is flat. So there are no more people waiting for 47 years, no more waiting for 11 years, everyone averaged to 26 years throughout Indonesia," he explained.

However, he acknowledged that the implementation of the new formula changed the map of the allocation of hajj quotas in various regions significantly next year compared to this year's quota.

For example, based on data from the Ministry of Hajj, he said, East Java received the largest increase in the hajj quota of 7,255 people because the queue length in the region reached 1.13 million people.

On the other hand, West Java experienced the largest reduction in quota of around 9,083 people with 787,071 queues, while quotas for Hajj candidates from North Sumatra decreased by 2,415 people with a waiting list of 156,992 people.

"(The new meeting) finally affects anyone who then departs this year (2026)," Hasan said.

He also emphasized that the change in the formula for calculating the allocation of prospective hajj candidates was in accordance with applicable regulations and laws.

Through this policy, his party wants to ensure that wherever prospective pilgrims register, both in Javanese and outside Java, they have the same rights and estimates of departure time.

"That (the name of) the principle of justice, which is then legally proven to be in the law," he said.

By Uyu Septiyati Liman