President Muhammadu Buhari has approved an official exchange rate of N160 to $1 for the Nigeria Christian Pilgrims Commission’s (NCPC) operations.
Disclosing this development to State House correspondents, Monday, Executive Secretary of the Commission, John Keneddy-Opara, said the President assured of his continued cooperation with the commission’s activities.
Keneddy-Opara was at the State House in Abuja to brief President Buhari on the Commission’s activities.
“As you are aware he has approved $1 to N160 for the conventional exchange rate for this pilgrimage operation and he also agreed that he will continue to encourage us particularly as we drive to ensure self sustenance.
“This is a journey and we are sure that we are going to succeed. So he was very happy with the entire process. We are praying that God will help us to be a source of strength to Mr. President, so that the Federal government and states will spend the necessary resources on other things while the pilgrimage is self funding as time goes on.
“We are already running four pilgrimages in one year. The first is the Easter pilgrimage which has passed, the Youth Pilgrimage which we termed operation catch them young, the family pilgrimage and the overall pilgrimage. For those going to Israel for the 11 days trip, it is N379, 840 and for the youth pilgrimage it is going to cost N357, 000.”
According to him, Nigerians on pilgrimage can now undergo skills acquisition programmes organised by the Nigerian Christian Pilgrims Commission and the Ministry of Agriculture in Israel towards training them in the area of agriculture.
Continuing, Keneddy-Opara said: “We are introducing the pilgrimage pilot lottery scheme that will enable people who are lucky to go on this trip without much dependence on the state and the federal government.
“I came to brief the President on the activities of the Nigerian Christian Pilgrims’ Commission, earlier my colleague, the Chairman of Hajj Commission had come to brief him.
“I had to tell him where we are and how we started the commission and where we are today and our prayers and I want to say that the President was very happy with the commission and he said the commission has done very well.”
