Which is better and more rewarding: distributing money to the poor and needy in their impoverished countries, or sending it to Makkah to buy and distribute food in the Grand Mosque, knowing that there is much good in Makkah and that the needy are abundant in their own countries?

The reward for obedience is multiplied according to time and place, and Mecca is the best and most beloved land to Allah. However, the rules of Sharia necessitate prioritizing the needy among people. So, if poverty becomes severe in a country, it is obligatory to console its people with money and food, and spending money on them is better than spending it in any other country, even Mecca. This is because the best deeds are those that uphold obligations. The summary of the matter is that spending money in the most needy places is better than spending it in Mecca if the people of Mecca are less in need. If the people of Mecca are equal in need to other countries, then spending money there is better.