<div style="text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><b>Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday inaugurated the first-ever national level conference and fair on Hajj and Umrah Management in the capital.</b></span><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; "><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">She opened the event at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre through a virtual platform from her official residence Ganabhaban.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (HAAB) in collaboration with the Religious Affairs Ministry arranged “The National Conference on Hajj and Umrah Management-2022 and Hajj and Umrah Fair.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The objectives of the event include providing the pilgrims with proper hajj-related information, making them aware about current technology-based hajj management, enabling them to directly contact with Hajj agencies and reducing the interference of middlemen and scammers.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Two seminars will be held on 'Hajj and Umrah Management: Achievements and Actions needed' and 'e-Hajj Management and Route to Mecca Initiatives' at the conference.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Different Hajj agencies, financial organisations and the concerned authorities have installed some 150 stalls and pavilions in the three-day Hajj and Umrah Fair, which remains open to pilgrims from 10am to 8pm every day.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Bangladesh is the 4th largest pilgrim-sending country in the world.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">More than 90 percent of Bangladeshi hajj pilgrims and 100 percent umrah pilgrims go to Saudi Arabia under private management.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">State Minister for Religious Affairs Md. Faridul Haque Khan, State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism M Mahbub Ali, Saudi Ambassador to Bangladesh Essa Yussef Essa Al Dulaihan, Religious Affairs Secretary Kazi Enamul Hassan and HAAB president Shahadat Hossain Taslim spoke at the inaugural ceremony. UNB</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>