600 citizens to perform Hajj on expanses of ZCF

The Zayed Charitable Foundation (ZCF) has approved the budget for one thousand pilgrims ( 600 locals and 400 expatriates) who will perform Hajj on its expenses in coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the country's embassies abroad.Obaid Salem Al Dhaheri, Director General of ZCF said that an annual budget had been allocated for this purpose, amounting AED 15 million for citizens within the state and AED five million for pilgrims abroad.He said that this generous gesture comes in implementation of the directives of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces and the follow up of H.H. Sheikh Nahyan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of ZCF. Al Dhaheri noted that the total amount spent by the foundation on pilgrimage since 2002 has so far amounted to AED 61 million in the country whereas 4200 citizens were sent to perform Hajj, and outside the country AED 24 million were benefited by 23 states. For his part, Atiq Al Muhairi, Head of the firmware in ZCF said that there are certain condition for applicants including registry should only be for locals, and the applicant should not have already performed Hajj, should be 30 years old or more, and should be a low-income citizen. He added that candidates from outside the UAE should apply through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, UAE embassies in various countries and accredited institutions. Al Muhairi said that the foundation identified places to submit applications in different parts of the country, whereas applications will be presented in Fujairah on September 7th and 8th in the Sheikh Zayed Mosque in Dibba Al Fujairah. In Ras Al Khaimah, applications will be accepted on 11 and 12 September in the Sheikh Zayed Mosque in Ras Al Khaimah. He added that citizens of Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman and Umm Al Quwain may submit their applications on 13 and 14 September in the Sheikh Zayed Mosque in Ajman, while Al Ain residents may submit their applications on 18 and 19 of the same month in the Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed mosque in Al Basra area. Citizens in the western region may submit their applications on September 20 in Zayed city in the Western Region and citizens of Dalma Island on September 21 in the wedding hall on the island of Dalma and Al Silaa city residents on Sept. 22 at Tamm center in Al Silaa.Citizens of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi may submit their applications at the headquarters of ZCF from 25 to 28 of September, from eight o'clock in the morning till noon.