Accra: Alhaji Abdul Rauf Ibrahim Tanko, Chairman of the Pilgrims Affairs Office of Ghana, says the hajj management body has decided to engage GCB Bank as its new banker.

According to the Chairman, the decision was arrived at after Stanbic Bank failed to honour a GHS13 million loan request to pre-finance hajj operations for the 2025 hajj season.

He disclosed that surprisingly, the GCB Bank intervened despite not being a banker for the Pilgrims Affairs Office, which was then managed by the Ghana Hajj Taskforce.

“GCB Bank gave us money when we did not even have an account with them,” he said at a meeting with members of the Ghana Hajj Agents Association.

During the 2025 Hajj season, StanbicBank, as the official banker of the Pilgrims Affairs Office of Ghana, had been recieving all hajj fare payments from pilgrims and agents.

Alhaji Tanko urged agents to take note of the development and ensure that all hajj-related payments go through the new banker.

He announced that Ghanaian Muslims intending to embark on Hajj next year will be required to pay GH¢60,000, marking a GH¢2,000 reduction from the previous Hajj fare of GH¢62,000.

He explained that extensive consultation with Muslim leaders led to the decision to reduce the hajj fare.

He noted that the reduction was in fulfilment of the president’s pledge of further reducing the cost of Hajj to Ghanaian pilgrims.

He assured agents of paying their delayed commission and pledged to see to the transporting of 62 potential pilgrims who could not go for Hajj due to unforeseen circumstances.