• As 75 expectant mothers bypass test

A Nigerian female pilgrim has become the first to give birth naturally in the 2023 hajj, as the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health confirmed first natural birth in the 2023 Hajj.

Conventionally, however, pregnant women are prohibited from taking part in Hajj exercise, hence the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) had introduced a compulsory pregnancy test to ascertain the status of female pilgrims before issuance of visas.

Nevertheless, the national medical team of Hajj mission recently regretted how 75 pregnant women, who deliberately bypassed the compulsory pregnancy test, sneaked into the Kingdom with the intention of performing the spiritual exercise.

According to Saudi Health Ministry, the first childbirth from a Nigerian pilgrim took place at the country’s Maternity And Children Hospital in Makkah during the peak period of the Hajj exercise.

The Ministry, in a release, stated that the pilgrim gave birth to a baby boy when all the pilgrims were at Mina observing the pilgrimage, adding that the baby had been named Abdul Rahman.

In the statement, on Thursday “the patient was received from the hospital emergency room by an ambulance and she was 39 weeks pregnant. She was suffering from labour pains before childbirth.

“Praise be to God, she gave birth naturally, and she is in good health, praise be to God. The Nigerian woman expressed her deep thanks and gratitude to the medical staff for the excellent care for her and her child.

“It is noteworthy that the maternity hospital yearly receives a number of deliveries during the Hajj, to whom it gives all attention and care,” the statement said

Head of medical team, Dr. Usman Galadima, who spoke with journalists on Makkah revealed that expectant women were intentionally prohibited from pilgrimage to prevent unforeseen circumstances as a result of overbearing weather condition and rigorous ritual exercise.

He said some of the pregnant pilgrims, who were referred to the Saudi hospital for treatment, might have been exposed to dangerous illnesses and further exposed to underlining sicknesses without coming in hand with appropriate medication.

Galadima said though the Saudi officials usually allowed drugs with prescriptions that were placed in their original packs, he regretted that most of the medicines were usually seized at Nigerian airports.

(The Guardian)

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