ARAFAT — The General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) announced on Saturday the official figures of the total number of pilgrims who are performing Hajj this year. A total of 1,833,164 pilgrims came from within the Kingdom and abroad to perform the annual pilgrimage and these include 1,611,310 foreign pilgrims and 221,854 domestic pilgrims, both citizens and expatriates, the GASTAT said in a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency. The authority stated that the total number of male foreign and domestic pilgrims stood at 958,137, while the number of female pilgrims reached 875,027. Regarding the percentage of pilgrims coming from all over the world, the report stated that the rate of pilgrims from the Arab countries accounted for 22.3 percent while the rate of pilgrims from Asian countries other than Arab countries reached 63.3 percent. The rate of pilgrims from African countries other than Arab countries reached 11.3 percent whereas the rate of pilgrims from European, American, Australian and other unclassified countries reached 3.2 percent. An overwhelming majority of more than 1.5 million pilgrims came by air. The number of foreign pilgrims who landed via Saudi airports reached 1,546,345 while 60,251 pilgrims arrived via land ports, and 4,714 arrived via seaports. It is noteworthy that GASTAT issued statistical data and indicators for the Hajj season of 2024, and these were based on administrative records data, considering it as the main source of data. The authority's Hajj Statistics Bulletin shows the total numbers of pilgrims, and their break up in accordance with gender, nationality, and mode of transport. The GASTAT is the only official statistical reference for statistical data and information in Saudi Arabia. It carries out all statistical work and technically supervises the statistical sector, in addition to designing and implementing field surveys, conducting statistical studies and research, analyzing data and information, and all documentation work.
