TheCable

Many Nigerian pilgrims currently in Saudi Arabia for this year’s hajj have been patronising local food vendors.

The food vendors have become more popular among Nigerians because their charges are said to be less compared to those of the restaurants and other eateries.

A number of pilgrims in Medinah told NAN that they have restricted their spending to feeding and commuting within the city.

Some said they had prepared for this situation by bringing along items such as toothpaste, soap and cream, among others, to save cost.

They said while there was no significant increase in the prices of many items, they still found them very expensive as a result of the exchange rate.

“I have cut down on my expenses and I am avoiding the purchase of those gift items which I can find back home,” a Katsina pilgrim, who wanted to be anonymous, reportedly said.

“This is because when I converted the prices to our naira, I found out that it will be cheaper to buy such items back home.

“I only buy items such as food, because feeding is essential,” another pilgrim, Ali Adamu, said.

Similarly, NAN observed that other nationals, especially Africans, also patronise these Saudi Arabia-based Nigerian food vendors.

While banks and bureaux de change do not accept the Nigerian currency, it can be changed at Automated Teller Machines (ATMs).

A pilgrim, who used the facility, said the naira changed for N102 to one Saudi Riyal, while a Nigerian, who exchanges the naira for the Riyal, gave his rate as one Riyal to N125.

The man, who declined to give his name, but only said he is from Borno, added that it was much better than the rate of N66 to one Riyal during the 2015 hajj.

“We do not like what is happening to our currency. Even the Saudis are not happy,” he said.

He added that the situation was not limited to the Nigerian currency, saying countries such as Iran, Sudan and Ghana were experiencing similar fall in value.