Pakistan seeks early expansion of Makkah Route Initiative at international airport in Karachi

KARACHI: The chief executive of Pakistan’s southern Sindh province, Murad Ali Shah, described the Makkah Route Initiative as “very important” during a meeting with the Saudi envoy, Nawaf Said Al-Malky, on Wednesday, saying he was keen on its early implementation at the airport in Karachi.
Launched as part of the kingdom’s Vision 2030 plan, the initiative allows for the completion of immigration procedures at the pilgrim’s country of departure, making it possible to bypass long immigration and customs checks upon reaching Saudi Arabia, which significantly reduces the waiting time and makes the entry process smoother and faster.
Its pilot project was first implemented in 2019 at the Islamabad International Airport, after which several thousand pilgrims performing Hajj under the government scheme availed themselves of it by catching flights to the kingdom from the country’s federal capital.
Following the successful completion of the initiative, the Prime Minister’s Office issued instructions to expand the service to other airports in Karachi, Lahore, Quetta and Peshawar. To this effect, the two governments signed a memorandum of understanding in May of last year.
After holding several meetings with relevant departments, the Saudi officials conveyed their readiness in October 2023 to extend the facility to Karachi and Lahore.
“Syed Murad Ali Shah and Ambassador of Saudi Arabia Mr. Nawaf Said Al-Malky in their meeting at the Chief Minister House discussed the Route to Makkah Project and agreed to fulfil all the requirements at the earliest to implement the project,” an official statement announced.
“The chief minister said that the project was very important and he was keen to see it implemented for the Hujjaj [pilgrims] of Sindh at [the] Jinnah Terminal,” it added.
The meeting was attended by several senior provincial officials who told the chief minister almost all the formalities had been worked out between the two states to introduce the facility in Karachi.
A Saudi delegation, led by the kingdom’s envoy to Pakistan, visited the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi this week to survey the area that will be used to upscale the Makkah Route Initiative and held meetings with Customs, Immigration, Anti-narcotics Force, Airport Security Force and Civil Aviation Authority officials.