A lot of individuals are finding it difficult to get their passport renewed.
Some can’t process a new one due to delay in getting biometric date.
During the opening of Nigeria Immigration Service Passport Front Desk Office in Auchi, Edo State, on Saturday, May 20, 2023.
The Interior Minister, Rauf Aregbesola revealed that the Nigerian government will soon wrap up negotiations with the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST).
This is to ensure the use of its quick mail service for delivering of passports to Nigerians who choose such a service.
“We are in the final stage of concluding negotiations with NIPOST to begin using its speed mail service to deliver passports to Nigerians wherever they are in the world after production,” the Minister disclosed.
According to Sola Fasure, the Minister’s media adviser, the opening of a second Passport Front Office in Auchi, Edo State, is part of the government’s attempt to provide effective service to Nigerians.
He cited Aregbesola as saying that the administration intended to issue passports to anyone who requested one in a timely manner, at a fair price, and without undue stress.
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Aregbesola acknowledged that Edo State has one of the highest rates of passport applications in Nigeria.
He also said that the recent rise in demand would probably result in a longer wait between submission and pickup.
“Our current working schedule is that fresh application would take six weeks after biometric data registration and three weeks for renewal.
This is reasonable, competitive and in line the global best practices.
“The challenge, however, is the waiting period at the point of application and data registration.
“All applicants will be put in a queue, depending on the centre of their choice, to determine the registration date.
Regrettably, it might take two months in some highly competitive centres where the application is very high.
We have no control over this.”
However, he claimed that the Federal Government had opened more front desk locations on purpose.
This will expand the number of registration centers and shorten the wait time before biometric data capture.
The Interior Minister visited Daura in Katsina State, Alimosho in Lagos, Ilesa in Osun, Zaria in Kaduna, and Oyo in Oyo State just this year to inaugurate Passport Front Desk Offices.
The choice of Auchi, according to the Comptroller General of the Nigerian Immigration Service, Isah Jere Idris, is appropriate given that Edo State has the fifth-highest number of local passport applications among the states, according to his prior remarks.
According to him, “In the past 365 days, Edo State has processed 56,291 applications out of the 1.5 million passports produced in Nigeria.
The commissioning of this front office will no doubt go a long way in reducing the traffic in Edo State and other neighboring states.”
