The Chairman of the National Hajj Task Force, Alhaji Collins Dauda, has confirmed that six Ghanaian pilgrims who died during the 2025 Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca had pre-existing health conditions.
Speaking to the media, Alhaji Dauda stated that the families of the deceased have been formally notified.
He clarified that while the Ghana Hajj Board had earlier announced the deaths of seven Ghanaians on June 8 — comprising five women and two men — only six of them were part of the official Hajj contingent. The seventh individual, though Ghanaian, had traveled to Saudi Arabia on a tourist visa.
“From our contingent, I can confirm six deaths. We have received information about a seventh person who also passed away, but he did not travel with the official group.
Nevertheless, he is Ghanaian,” Dauda said. “Those who died were elderly and had underlying health conditions. It was not our wish for this to happen, but it was the will of Allah.”
He noted that special prayers were held in Mecca for the deceased, and assured that appropriate steps will be taken to honour them once the full contingent of pilgrims returns to Ghana later this month.
The Hajj Board has extended its condolences to the affected families on behalf of the nation.
