The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has announced that the automation of passport applications in Nigeria is 99% complete and is expected to go live next week. This was disclosed during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today.
The minister stated that the new system has undergone testing and should be operational in the coming week. This will ensure that Nigerians only need to visit an immigration center for biometric capture. All other aspects of the application process, including uploading passport pictures and supporting documents, can be completed from the comfort of one’s home.
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This development comes after the minister’s promise of reforms to simplify the passport application process, with the possibility of Nigerians being able to submit online applications as early as December. The minister emphasized the need for service providers to make life easier for people and not make things more difficult than they ought to be.
The minister also assured that the ministry would employ all avenues to reduce Nigerians’ frustration in the application process. According to him, only a biometric capture needs to be done in person, explaining that all necessary details can be submitted via a Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) portal.
He further stressed that the days of drawn-out enrollment procedures are long gone and unacceptable, adding that it is Nigerians’ right to experience a smooth procedure. “The era of people sacrificing a whole day just because they want to go to a passport office for enrollment is over; it is unacceptable. You cannot inconvenience people based on their rights; it is the right of the people to have a seamless experience,” he said.
In related news, the Minister announced that 204,322 international passports are now ready for collection out of the backlog of over 300,000 he met upon assumption of office. However, only 99,901 had been collected out of the amount ready for collection.